A Beating Heart
by Buddi563
Summary: Kyle and Jessi have their worlds turned upside down when they learn that Jessi is pregnant. Certainly they have conceived an incredible child, with their genetics, and when word gets out, past Latnok scientists catch wind and decide they want to have Jessi and the baby for themselves and their experiments. Trailer /watch?v uGvodKFWPY&list UU8mJn2H-fjOfGcJllJKMF A
1. Chapter 1

Kyle stepped through the front door and immediately noticed that the family was just beginning to sit down for dinner.

"I told you, I'd make it," he said with a smirk as he made his way into the dining room and took his usual seat next to Jessi.

"You came in just in time," Josh replied, putting a rather large helping of mashed potatoes on his plate. "I was just about to start making bets about how late you were going to be." He and Kyle chuckled, Stephen rolled his eyes, Nicole smiled playfully, and Jessi quietly picked at her salad. Kyle didn't take much notice. He filled up his own plate with chicken and potatoes and started eating. He had just been out with Tom Foss, training. Kyle was surprised to see that Jessi didn't show up to train with them. She had never missed a session before, but that would have to be a conversation with her another time- not at the dinner table.

"Did you hear from Lori at all today, Nicole?" Stephen asked across the table. She nodded her head.

"She's having such a good time at UDub, I don't think she's ever going to come home," Nicole explained with a chuckle.

"Well I hope she's putting just as much time into her _studies _as she is her fun," Stephen responded taking a generous bite of his chicken leg.

"Hah!" Josh scoffed, almost choking on his own food. "Yeah right! She went to the same school as Hillary and Declan, I highly doubt she's doing much studying. It's probably party-central out there!" Stephen shot a disappointed look toward Josh, to which he looked mildly offended. "What?!" he said playfully. "It's true!"

"I think you should give Lori a little more credit, Josh," Kyle said with a smile. Josh playfully flicked a piece of food back to Kyle and they both laughed.

"Come on, now," Nicole told them sternly. "Don't make a mess." The boys settled down and everyone continued discussing what shenanigans Lori and her crew were up to now that they were in college, and Nicole continued to enthuse Kyle and Jessi about being seniors. Of course she was drilling Kyle with all sorts of questions as to what he wanted to do out of high school, but he still hadn't come to a solid decision.

"Well I know for a fact that you can do whatever you want to do... or everything you want to do, if you're truly passionate about it," Nicole said supportively.

"I know," Kyle said thankfully. With the capability to do everything, it was hard to narrow down just one career path.

"What about you, Jessi?" Nicole said, turning to the girl who hadn't said more than a word the entire meal. "Have you made up your mind about what you want to do yet?"

"No," Jessi responded, slightly irritated. Nicole didn't respond and heads turned toward her.

"Are you okay, Jessi?" Stephen asked. "You've barely touched your dinner." Jessi looked up from her plate and noticed that everyone was watching her.

"Yeah," she said. "I guess I'm not that hungry." She pushed her food away and looked at Nicole. "May I be excused?" Nicole glanced at Stephen and then nodded her head. Jessi grabbed her plate and took it into the kitchen before going into her room and closing the door behind her.

"Do you know what's bothering Jessi, Kyle?" Nicole asked. Kyle shook his head.

"I haven't really talked with her much this week," Kyle answered.

"Maybe she's on her period," Josh said, which prompted Stephen to slap Josh's arm.

Kyle helped clean up the kitchen after dinner. Nicole and Stephen both quietly went their separate ways to catch up with work and Josh made himself comfortable on the couch in the living room where he got ready for his nightly G-Force date with Andi.

Kyle knocked gently on Jessi's door.

"Go away, Kyle," Jessi said. Kyle started to walk away, to give her space, but then he went back and knocked again. There was no answer, so he stepped into her bedroom. Jessi was sitting quietly on her bed, phone in her hand, but she was looking out the window.

"You've been really distant, lately," Kyle stated. "What the matter?"

"Nothing," Jessi said, fumbling with her phone so that it would play music. She continued her gaze out the window. Kyle shut the door behind him and made his way toward her bed.

"It's not nothing," he protested. "You've been ignoring me. You've barely even _looked_ at me all week, and then you missed training with Foss today." Jessi remained silent but turned the music up on her phone. "Won't you talk to me?"

"I have nothing to say to you right now," Jessi stated, still not looking at him. Kyle sat back and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You always have something to say, Jessi," he said. She quickly turned to him and swatted his hand away.

"Don't touch me!" she yelled as the lights flickered. Kyle stood off the bed. Something had her extremely worked up, and he wasn't quite in the mood to clean burst light bulb off of the floor today.

"Did I do something?" Kyle asked. Jessi turned away again. Her eyes were closed and she inhaled a deep breath as Nicole has told her while addressing Jessi's temper. At Kyle's question, Jessi laughed.

"You could say that," she said. Kyle moved closer.

"What did I do?" he asked. She grinded her teeth and shook her head.

"I was joking," she said.

"No you weren't."

"It doesn't matter just get out."

Before Kyle left, he stood for a moment and watched Jessi, still silently peering out the window listening to her music. He could hear the gunshots coming from Josh's game; Andi's voice was playfully shouting at him through the television, Nicole was scribbling notes at her desk and Stephen was tapping away at his computer, but there was a sound that Kyle didn't recognize.

"What's that sound?" he said, just as his hand hit the door handle to leave Jessi's room. He turned around and looked at her again. Her eyes finally met Kyle's and they were wide with surprised. She quickly pretended that she wasn't so surprised.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said, clicking the volume of her music up to the highest level.

"You don't hear that?" Kyle said, gazing around the room with a confused look.

"Hear what?" Jessi said, scratching the back of her neck and pulling her knees to her chest.

"If you turned off your music, you'd be able to hear it better," Kyle said.

"No, that's okay," Jessi said.

"Seriously, turn it off, I need to know where this is coming from," Kyle said.

"Kyle, it's my room, if I want to play music, I will," she retorted. Kyle moved closer to her.

"It's coming from over here," he said, narrowing his eyes. "Is it that song?"

"Maybe, I don't know what you're talking about, Kyle! Will you just get out of here?" the lights flickered again and Jessi finally rose off of her bed. Kyle grabbed at her phone, but Jessi held on tightly. "Let go!" Frustrated, Kyle tried to find the volume button, but Jessi kept pulling away. In a struggle to get the phone, it ended up falling onto the hard floor and turning off completely. "Way to go," Jessi said, crossing her arms. "Now get _out of my room."_

But Kyle listened. He could hear the sound more clearly without the distraction of her music. It was a faint sound, but it was definitely there. But the sound was coming from right where Jessi was standing. There were two sounds in the room just like it. Both he and Jessi's hearts were beating quickly after their little scuffle, Jessi's perhaps a little faster than his own. He could feel her anger and anxiety through the sound of her beating heart. But now he heard another, and it wasn't Josh, or Nicole, or Stephen. Kyle was familiar with their heartbeats. This new sound was soft and quiet.

Kyle looked at Jessi, his eyes wide.

"It's a heartbeat, isn't it?" Kyle asked softly. Jessi stood motionless, glaring at Kyle with an unchanged expression. For a short moment she said nothing until she finally snapped. Collapsing onto her bed, she broke down into tears.

"I don't know what to do!" she sobbed quietly, laying on her side, her back facing Kyle. Kyle stood still. He was so shocked that he forgot how to move or speak. Jessi continued to cry into her pillow. Finally, Kyle moved toward her and sat on her bed again, putting his hand on her back. This time she didn't push him away.

"We- we'll figure it out," Kyle said. He didn't know how, but he had to say something. "Jessi, we need to tell Nicole."

"No!" she said, sitting up abruptly. "You can't tell Nicole and Stephen!"

"Well they're going to find out eventually! It's better to be honest with them now!" Kyle explained.

"Oh yeah, because we've been _so _honest with them the last six months," she retorted. "We've been hiding the fact that we're dating- among other things. They're going to be pissed."

"Well yeah, but at least it will be a big weight off your shoulders," Kyle said. Jessi sighed, wiping her eyes but only to have more tears escape.

"What if I could just make it go away?" Jessi suggested quietly. "No one will ever have to know." Kyle's eyes widened again. He was shocked that Jessi would think such a thing.

"No, Jessi... don't- don't jump to any conclusions just yet," he said. "Let's clear our minds and think about this for a little bit, okay?" Jessi nodded her head and looked back toward her window. Kyle put his arm around her and pulled her head towards his, turning her face so that he could give her a kiss. Jessi was reluctant, but gave into Kyle and returned the kiss. They sat there quietly for quite some time, listening to the duet that had turned into a trio of heartbeats that now filled the room.


	2. Chapter 2

The nervous pounding in Jessi's chest slowed. Kyle was lying in the bed next to her, his arm wrapped around his body. He was quiet as he listened. Finally, Jessi's breathing evened out and her body relaxed. Kyle slowly moved off the bed and walked to the door, closing it quietly behind him as he left her room so he wouldn't wake her.

"Hey, is everything okay?" Nicole, who was walking through the hall back toward the kitchen, asked Kyle. Kyle paused. He hated lying to his parents, but he had gotten good at it. If Jessi didn't want them to know, then Kyle would respect her wishes.

"I guess she hasn't been feeling well this week," he explained. Nicole narrowed her eyes.

"But you two never get sick," she said thoughtfully. Kyle shrugged.

"Not usually, but I guess it can happen," he said.

"That's true," Nicole agreed. "I'll make her some hot tea."

"That's okay," Kyle said quickly. "She's sleeping now, I don't think she wants to be bothered."

"In the morning then," she replied with a warm smile. Kyle smiled back. He loved how unconditionally loving and caring Nicole was. He loved how much she tried to make Jessi feel loved, considering the girl's questionable past.

"Sounds good," Kyle said. "I'm actually pretty tired too, I think I'm going to go to bed now. Good night!"

"Good night, Kyle," Nicole said and carried on her way into the kitchen. Kyle quickly walked down the hallway and into his bedroom, closing the door. He took in a deep breath and began to pace around his room. Why hadn't they been more careful? What was the family going to think? How were they going to tell them? What was the school going to think?

Questions were racing through Kyle's head so fast that the room began to spin. He got into his tub and sat down, unable to stop his mind from racing. The main question going through his mind was, 'What do I do next?' The next question, which worried him even more, was, 'What is Jessi going to do?'

Soon enough, Kyle decided to call Lori. He had to tell someone. He was at a complete loss, and Lori always seemed to be full of wisdom for tricky social situations. Pulling out his phone, he dialed her number and waited as it began ringing. It rang, and rang, and rang some more. Kyle was just about to hang up and try again later when he heard Lori's voice from the other end.

"Heyyy Kyle! Whatsup?!" she yelled into his ear. Kyle had to move the phone away from his ear for a second. Her shout along with the extremely loud background noise made it hard to hear.

"Hi Lori, where are you?" Kyle asked.

"Ohhh, just hanging out with Mark, Hillary and Declan," she responded, not shouting quite so loud this time.

"And about 200 other people, it sounds like," Kyle chuckled. "Are you drunk?"

"Not yet, but I'm working on it," Lori answered. "What's up? You sound like something's bothering you."

"I need to talk to you," Kyle said.

"Okay, that's what we're doing," Lori replied jokingly.

"No, like- in person," Kyle explained. "It's not something I can really talk about over the phone, but I need your help."

"Sure, yeah, that's fine," Lori said. Kyle could hear Mark say muttering in the background, causing Lori to laugh distractedly. He figured he would let her go.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" he asked.

"Nothing is planned yet," Lori answered.

"Do you mind if I come visit you for lunch?"

"Sure!" Lori replied. "But maybe a late lunch because it's Friday night and I'll probably sleep in until like noon tomorrow." Kyle chuckled.

"That sounds fine, thank you," he said.

"Good night!" Lori said.

"Night," Kyle ended the call and sat back in his tub.

Needless to say, Kyle didn't get much sleep that night and woke up extra groggy. He slumped into the kitchen for breakfast, hair a mess and a dazed look in his eyes. Upon entering the kitchen, he noticed Jessi and Nicole sitting in the breakfast nook.

"Good morning, Kyle," Nicole said, chipper as ever, until she realized how tired he still looked. "Or not... didn't sleep well last night?" Jessi and Kyle's eyes met, and Jessi's narrowed. She had a mug of hot tea sitting in front of her.

"I guess not," Kyle responded.

"Aw, well at least it's Saturday. You can relax all day if you want to," Nicole said. "Josh is still sleeping... he stayed up until three in the morning playing G-Force with Andy."

"I was actually planning on having lunch with Lori at UDub today, if that's alright with you," Kyle informed Nicole. Jessi was still staring him down, and narrowed her eyebrows when he spoke of visiting Lori.

"No, that's fine!" Nicole said happily. "I think she'd love a visit from you."

Kyle nodded and shuffled about in the kitchen in order to pour himself a bowl of cereal. He sat down at the table between Jessi and Nicole. Jessi was sipping at her tea and Nicole was scratching down on a crossword puzzle in the newspaper. He looked at the plate in front of Jessi, noticing a half-eaten piece of toast with jelly on it.

"Is that all you're having?" Kyle asked with concern in his voice as he munched on his cereal.

"I had two pieces, thank you, Doctor Kyle," Jessi muttered through gritted teeth. Everyone was quiet, and Kyle was hyper-aware of the beating heart in Jessi's womb. Finally, Jessi spoke again. "So, you're going to see Lori today?"

"Yes," Kyle responded.

"Why?"

"Because I need to talk to her about something."

"You need to talk to her about something," Jessi repeated, nodding her head. Her eyes were locked on Kyle. She glared at him until he finished eating, making him feel a little uneasy. As soon as he finished, she nodded for him to come into her room. Kyle grabbed his bowl and her plate and took them to the sink before following her.

"Did you just decide to ignore everything we talked about last night?" she said, crossing her arms.

"No," Kyle said.

"Kyle! This is serious!" Jessi responded.

"I know it is," Kyle said frustratedly, trying not to raise his voice. "That's why I need to talk to Lori- she always knows what to do."

"She's never been in this situation before," Jessi stated.

"No," Kyle agreed. "But she has been in public school her entire life whereas we've only been in school for 3 years. She'll at least have _something_ to say." Jessi looked away and grinded her teeth, arms still crossed.

"Fine," she said. Kyle sighed with relief. "But I'm coming with you."

The first part of the car ride both Jessi and Kyle were silent.

"How long have you known?" Kyle asked, breaking the silence.

"Pretty much as soon as it happened," Jessi answered. "I knew something was different right away... and when I was late I had my suspicions. But-" she stopped, peering out the window she took in a breath and sighed. "But when I first felt the heartbeat I knew for sure."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Kyle asked.

"I was scared," Jessi admitted. Kyle was surprised. He rarely heard Jessi admit to being scared. "I _am_ scared. " Kyle put his hand on her leg.

"I am too," he said. "But we're going to figure it out, okay?" Jessi nodded.

As Kyle expected, Lori was late getting to the cafe for lunch. She came strolling in at 1:15, sunglasses on and large circles under her eyes. Declan followed behind.

"Great," Jessi said, rolling her eyes.

"Don't worry, Declan kept my secrets for the longest time. If there's anyone we can trust, it's him," Kyle reassured her. He grinned as Lori sat down across from him and ordered a coffee.

"Hey, Kyle, I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" Declan said, taking a seat next to Lori.

"Not so loud," Lori said, taking off her shades.

"Hi Lori," Kyle said happily. He hadn't realized how much he missed Lori since she'd been away at school. She didn't visit home very often. "It's good to see you up and moving," he said.

"Barely," she said, taking the coffee the server handed her and took a rather large sip. "This should help, though." Declan chuckled. "Hey Jessi!"

"Hey," Jessi said.

"So what is it that you wanted to talk about?" asked Lori.

Kyle had gone over the conversation in his head over and over a hundred times before. Why was it so hard to tell her now? Jessi's arms were crossed again as she glared at Kyle. He fidgeted in his seat.

"You have to promise you won't tell anyone, including our family," Kyle told Declan and Lori.

"Sure, we promise," Declan said. Lori nodded in agreement. Kyle sighed.

"Jessi's pregnant," he blurted out. There, he said it. Jessi remained unmoved but Lori choked on her coffee and Declan's mouth came open.

"You what?" Lori said, now turning her attention toward Jessi. Jessi shrugged and bit her lip. At this point the server came back with Kyle and Jessi's food, placing it in front of them, but neither were quite in the mood to eat anymore.

"Whoa," Declan said. "That was definitely a bomb dropped on my morning." He was now staring at Jessi curiously. "Well, who's the father?" Jessi quickly shot a look at Kyle, and he began to blush. Lori choked again.

"Are you guys trying to kill me?" she said, coughing up coffee out of her throat. Jessi cringed. "Kyle! Why didn't you tell us you guys were dating?"

"You are, dating, right?" Declan added.

"Of course," Kyle assured the two. "But Nicole and Stephen would never allow it since we're living under the same roof together."

"Well, yeah, I wonder why," Lori said sarcastically. "Oh wait..." Jessi scowled at Lori, clenching a fist under the table. She and Lori had been getting along relatively well recently, but Lori always managed to make comments that didn't make Jessi too happy.

"This isn't funny, Lori," Kyle pleaded.

"Sorry," she said.

"We don't know what to do," Kyle said.

"Well are you going to keep it?" Lori asked.

"I don't know," Jessi said quietly.

"How far along are you?" Declan asked. Kyle turned to Jessi, also wanting to know the answer.

"Six weeks and five days," she answered quickly.

"I mean, if you wanted, it's still early enough to get a safe abortion," Lori said, her voice hushed so other diners wouldn't hear. "That way nobody will ever have to know."

"That's true," Jessi said thoughtfully. Kyle stared at her desperately. Why would she want to kill the poor child?

"There has to be another way," he said.

"Adoption?" Lori suggested.

"Wait, hold up," Declan interrupted. "This is Kyle and Jessi! Just, take a second and think about this. With Kyle and Jessi's genetics, and intelligence, and the things they can do... can you imagine what a kid of their would be like?" Everyone was quiet.

"He has a point," Kyle said, turning to Jessi. She was quiet and contemplative.

"It's not that easy, Kyle," she said. "You're not the one who has to be a pregnant teenager walking around the school halls being laughed at and judged all the time. I've had enough of that for a lifetime, thank you." Kyle picked at his food. There were too many sides to the argument and so many options. This visit with Lori may have ended up a bit counter-productive.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Kyle asked Jessi. Lori and Declan now had their food, and Lori was looking up planned parenthood clinics for Jessi, while Declan pondered what kind of super-baby traits the child would have. Jessi looked at her now cold grilled cheese and took a bite off of the corner.

"Happy?" she asked. It did taste pretty good, so she continued to eat. This made Kyle feel a little better.

"Aww, Kyle's being all protective, how cute!" Lori said with a smile. Kyle gave her a look. He wasn't in the mood for jokes and neither was Jessi. After a while, Lori stopped looking up planned parenthood facilities and moved onto baby furniture, pointing out cute cribs and sets. Jessi was overwhelmed with the realization that she had to make an unfortunately tough decision.

"But think about it!" Lori said as they left the cafe, much less hungover than when she came into the cafe. "Aunt Lori! That has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

"I think you need to let Kyle and Jessi figure out what they're going to do first before getting too far ahead of yourself, Lori," Declan told her.

"I know, I know... it's the girl in me, I can't help it," she said. Even Jessi giggled. "Just... if you guys decide to keep it- you need to tell mom sooner than later. She's going to be pissed either way, you might as well get it over with now."

"Thanks," Kyle said. "I appreciate you guys meeting with us. I guess we still have a lot of talking to do." He held open the car door for Jessi to step in.

"Keep me posted!" Lori said, waving goodbye. Kyle and Jessi waved back.

The ride home was completely silent as they both thought about what the next step was to be.


	3. Chapter 3

Jessi made it perfectly clear to Kyle that she needed space. For the next couple of days, Kyle and Jessi didn't speak much. Every now and then Kyle would go into her room at night while she was sleeping to listen to the baby's heartbeat. He quickly researched on the internet so he could better understand what would be happening to Jessi's body each week.

One night, just a few days after meeting with Lori and Declan, Kyle was sitting in his room working on homework. Nicole, Stephen, and Jessi had already gone to bed, and Josh was video chatting with Andy on his computer. Kyle listened as he heard Jessi's door open. She had just gotten up to use the bathroom. Returning to his work, it was about thirty minutes until he realized that he hadn't heard Jessi go back to bed.

Kyle left his own room and walked down the hallway toward the bathroom. He saw that the light was on and the door was closed. He knocked twice gently.

"Jessi, are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," he heard her answer from inside. He could tell by the tone of her voice that she wasn't okay, and he could hear her heartbeat racing.

"You don't sound fine, can I come in?" Kyle insisted. There wasn't an answer, so Kyle slowly opened the door.

He saw Jessi curled up, sitting on the floor in front of the toilet, resting her head on the bathtub. Kyle sat on the ground beside her and pushed her hair away from her face. Her skin was warm to the touch and he could feel her trembling slightly.

"I feel like I might throw up," Jessi muttered.

"I read that's normal," Kyle reassured her. "Sickness is often one of the early symptoms of pregnancy."

"I know that," Jessi said. "I've never thrown up before... does it hurt?" Kyle laughed.

"You'll feel much better, trust me," he said. "I've only done it twice and both of those incidents involved alcohol." Jessi giggled slightly. She opened her eyes, took her head off of the bath tub and curled her knees to her chest, putting her hand on her forehead.

"I didn't think I would have to deal with this," Jessi told Kyle.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You and I are special," she started. "We can manipulate blood, and water and solid objects. We can jump off roofs and levitate. I just thought my body would handle this without all the issues."

Just outside of the bathroom, Josh had said his goodbye to Andy and was about to head upstairs for bed. Curiosity got the best of him and he snuck down the hallway to see what Jessi and Kyle were doing in the bathroom. When he heard their voices, he stopped and listened.

"It's just your body's way of preparing for the baby," Kyle explained. "Your hormones have spiked and they're taking a toll on your stomach." Jessi shook nervously at the thought of being sick. "Jessi, you can resist the urge for as long as you want... knowing you, probably forever, but trust me... you'll feel better."

Josh backed away from the bathroom slowly, quickly putting the pieces of the overheard conversation together. It didn't take him long to think back on the last couple of weeks to figure it out. He was almost to the stairs when Kyle came out of the bathroom.

"Hey, Josh," Kyle greeted.

"Oh, hey Kyle... I was just going to bed," Josh said trying to act normal as he backed away from Kyle.

"How long were you standing there?" Kyle asked, picking up that Josh was acting suspicious. Josh, being terrible at keeping anything to himself, looked defeated.

"Long enough," he admitted. Kyle gestured for him to come into his room. Kyle closed the door behind him, and Josh stood in front of Kyle with his arms crossed.

"You can't tell Nicole and Stephen, not yet," Kyle told him.

"Dude! You know I'm terrible at keeping secrets!" Josh reminded him. "Mom and Dad always see right through me. Since when have you and Jessi been an item? I didn't even know you guys were... ew okay, never mind, I don't want to go there. But what the hell man?"

"It was an accident!" Kyle said.

"What, the sex or the baby?" Josh asked. He tried to contain his laughter but failed. "Oh man, you're _screwed!"_

"Yeah, thanks," Kyle said as he shooed Josh out. Josh shook his head as he ran up the stairs to go to his room. Kyle left his own room and walked back into the bathroom where Jessi was just flushing the toilet.

"You lied," she said.

"What?"

"You said I would feel better, but I don't."

"Then you're not done yet," Kyle explained.

He sat with her for a long time. She came in and out of consciousness as she tried to sleep against the tub, waking up only to vomit again. She was shaking with anxiety, so Kyle brought her a blanket and covered her up. Around two in the morning, Jessi had almost been asleep for a full hour, and Kyle decided that it was time to get her to bed. As gently as possible, Kyle picked up Jessi off of the floor, still covered in her blanket. He carried her into her bedroom and laid her down onto the bed. Waking up slightly, Jessi grabbed the blanket and curled up. Kyle again moved the hair from her face.

"I put a trash can next to your bed, just in case," he told her. "Get some sleep." Jessi nodded and closed her eyes.

"Wait," she said as Kyle turned to leave the room. "Will you stay?" Kyle faced her again and made his way to her bed and laid down next to her.

"Of course," he said.

Kyle didn't sleep very well that night. The bed was comfortable, but it wasn't his tub. Also, every time Jessi moved, he woke up to make sure she was alright. The second Kyle heard Nicole's footsteps descending the stairs, Kyle jerked awake and dashed for the door. Jessi looked up, startled at his rapid movement, but she knew the drill. It wasn't the first time he'd spent the night in her room, anyway. Kyle quickly ran to his own room and closed the door. He made it back into his tub just in time, because only moments after he jumped in, Nicole opened the door to his room. He pretended to be asleep.

"Rise and shine, Kyle!" she said. "Time to get ready for school! I'm making pancakes!" Kyle pretended to wake up and stretch.

"Okay thanks," he said as usual.

By the time Kyle got dressed and left his room, Stephen had joined Nicole in the kitchen, sipping coffee and reading the paper while he got ready for work. Nicole was happily making her famous pancakes on the stove.

"Those smell delicious," Kyle said with a smile.

"Mm, I hope they are," Nicole responded playfully.

"They better be, or I'm going to complain to the manager," Josh said, stifling a yawn as he made his presence in the kitchen.

"Very funny," said Nicole as she put a few plain pancakes on a plate for Stephen and Kyle.

Josh and Kyle joined Nicole with the pancakes. Josh took a heaping handful of chocolate chips and dumped them onto his pancakes, and Kyle put a few blueberries on what would be Jessi's pancakes; just how she liked them. Jessi had been so quiet entering the kitchen that Stephen hadn't even realized she sat down next to him and gave him a startle.

"Good morning," she said. Stephen jumped.

"I didn't even see you come in, Jessi," he said.

"We made your favorite," Kyle said, taking a plate of blueberry pancakes to Jessi along with a cup of syrup. "They're blueberry."

"Oh," Jessi said, looking at the pancakes. "Thank you." She was hungry, but the thought of eating and the smell of the sugary syrup was not making her usually favorite breakfast look very appetizing.

With everyone at the table, slathering butter and syrup around their pancakes, Jessi watched. She took a bite of her own. They didn't taste good. She felt queasy, but she knew she had to eat something. Even more importantly, she had to act natural. Kyle looked at her from the corner of her eye to see if she was eating, and when he realized she had only taken a few bites, he gave her a subtle, worried look.

"I know what this needs," Josh said suddenly, looking at his plate of loaded chocolate chip pancakes. Everyone watched him curiously as he left the table and opened the refrigerator door. He came back with a bottle of Hershey's syrup in his hand and, with a proud grin, started to pour the chocolate on his pancakes.

Jessi was just biting off another piece of her pancake when she saw the sugary mess on Josh's plate. It put her over the edge. Quickly swallowing her bite, Jessi got up from the table and ran to the bathroom.

"Oh no," Nicole said sadly. "I thought she was feeling better." Kyle didn't say anything, and Josh glared at Kyle. He felt bad for making Jessi sick, but he was enjoying his chocolatey breakfast even more.

"She must have a bug or something," Kyle suggested.

"That's some bug," Stephen said from behind his newspaper.

"I'm going to call the doctor today and see if I can get her in," Nicole said, standing up and taking her plate to the sink.

"I- I don't think you should do that," Kyle blurted out.

"Why not?" Nicole asked, confused.

"_Yeah_ Kyle... why not?" Josh asked sarcastically.

"Because I know Jessi doesn't want to see a doctor. She'll ride it out on her own," Kyle explained.

"Well, I think I'll talk to Jessi about that myself," Nicole said. Kyle grinded his teeth, but if he argued anymore, Nicole would be really suspicious. Nicole left the kitchen and knocked on the bathroom door. "May I come in, Jessi?"

"I'm okay," Jessi answered.

"That's not what I asked," Nicole said, opening the door. Kyle was close behind her. "Do you want to try to get into the doctor today?"

"No," Jessi answered, standing off the ground and pushing her way past Nicole and Kyle so she could go to her room.

"Okay, well why don't you stay home from school today and I'll work from here and try to get you feeling better," Nicole suggested.

"No, I'm fine to go to school," Jessi said. "Really." Nicole sighed. She knew it was no use arguing with Jessi. The strong-willed teenager always got her way.

"Then you know you can have the nurse call me if you need picked up early," she told Jessi before leaving her alone. Kyle stepped into her room.

"Are you really feeling well enough to go to school?" Kyle asked. Jessi scoffed.

"No, but I'm not going to stay here with Nicole while she plays twenty questions, either," she said. "I'll go to school, but I might sneak back home once everyone is gone."

"Fine," Kyle agreed. They all went their separate ways to get ready for school.


	4. Chapter 4

Even though she felt a bit queasy, Jessi made it through the first couple of periods at school without an issue. Kyle was surprised to see her at her locker on his way to the cafeteria for lunch.

"Jessi, you're still here," he said as he walked up to her.

"I was just about to leave," she told him, closing her locker and walking in the other direction.

"Wait, why don't you come have something to eat before you go?" Kyle said, trying to dodge students in the hallway in order to keep up with her.

"Just thinking about the cafeteria makes me feel sick," Jessi responded.

"Okay," Kyle said, grabbing Jessi's arm so she would stop and look at him. "Just promise me you'll eat something when you get home."

"Sure," she responded. Kyle continued looking at her, knowing that she was not taking him seriously. "I _promise._"

"Okay," Kyle said with a smile. "I'll see you in a couple of hours."

"Okay."

But Jessi didn't go straight home. After she snuck out of the school, Jessi walked through the park and into the forest. It was one of her favorite places to be. It made her feel safe, and alone. She needed some time alone with her thoughts.

Jessi found the location in the woods where it met the river below. She hesitantly looked at the planks that reached out over the flowing water. This is where she had come when she felt the most alone; like she had nothing to live for at all. Jessi moved closer to the plank, stepping onto it and watching the river flow beneath her.

Being at this location triggered her memory. She remembered how cool the weather was, and the sound of a robin up in the trees. She remembered how her hair rustled in the breeze, and she remembered the pain that she had felt in her heart. It was a pain so intense that the only thing that could possibly make Jessi happy was the thought of dying. To not exist would wipe away all the fear, anxiety, and loneliness. It had seemed so simple at the time.

Jessi sat down on the plank. Tears were now streaming from her eyes as she thought back to that day. Even now she felt alone and unappreciated. Sure, she knew Kyle and the Trager's cared for her, but she would never truly be one of them. She had struggled to make friends after the roof-jumping incident, and Kyle refused to let her do any more tricks for ordinary people. Jessi had been training her abilities. She and Kyle were getting stronger and more powerful than ever, but what was the point when she couldn't _use_ her abilities?

She could feel her baby's heartbeat pulsing through her sore abdomen. It was strange to think that she was carrying a human life. It would become a life that she would have to look after and protect and take care of. While all of the people in Jessi's world failed her, she would have one person looking up to her for guidance. Jessi smiled, and wiped her tears. She sat on the plank for a long time before returning home.

"No, no, I'm okay," Kyle said into his phone as he walked through the door with Josh. "I'll be there tomorrow. I just have to take care of something today. Yeah. Okay. Thanks, Foss."

"I still can't believe you, bro," Josh said, closing the door behind him and throwing his backpack onto the ground.

"Just... keep your mouth shut, okay?" Kyle asked. Josh put up his hands in surrender.

"Fine, but you'll owe me big time," he said.

"Deal," Kyle said, grinning back to him. He then made his way to Jessi's room. The door was cracked, so he pushed it open and entered.

"Hey, Jessi," he said upon entering.

"Hey," she responded. She was lying on her bed staring at the ceiling.

"Feeling any better?" Kyle asked, sitting next to her.

"A little," she responded.

"What did you have for lunch?" Kyle asked. Jessi didn't answer. "Jessi, you promised."

"I'm not hungry," she told him.

"Well, you need to eat!"

"It's fine, Kyle, I'll just wait for dinner." Kyle was worried about Jessi, but he couldn't force her to eat anything.

Nicole arrived home shortly after 5PM carrying two large pizza boxes.

"Stephen's going to be late tonight, so I thought we'd have pizza for dinner!" she said as she set the boxes on the kitchen counter. Josh came running into the kitchen, sliding on his socks at the counter.

"Alright!" he said excitedly as he grabbed a plate and loaded it up before heading back into the living room to continue a television program he was watching. Nicole rolled her eyes. Jessi stood at the arch looking into the kitchen to see what Nicole had brought home.

"I wasn't sure if you were feeling any better so I got a half with mushrooms on it for you, Jessi," Nicole said. "But if you'd like I can make you some soup."

"No, that's okay," Jessi said, moving into the kitchen. "She took a plate and placed a piece of pizza onto it. Kyle watched her, grabbing a few slices for himself.

The three sat at the round table in the kitchen, and Nicole asked the two about their days.

"It was the usual," Kyle told her.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Jessi added in.

"Okay, then," Nicole said with a laugh. Jessi was trying her hardest to act normal as she ate, but with each bite and swallow she felt like she might be sick. She ended up picking the mushrooms off, which was unusual because she usually loved mushrooms.

After dinner, the Trager's decided to watch a movie as a family, which included both Kyle _and_ Jessi. Now that Stephen was home from work, the five of them huddled around the television and settled in. Josh had control of the X-Box and scrolled through Netflix. After they all decided to watch a comedy, he started naming off movies that looked interesting.

"Let's see," he began. "We've got "White Chicks", "Hitch", "Mean Girls", oh here's one... "What to Expect When You're Expecting"," he laughed when he read the title, but continued on with the list. "The Smurfs", "The Breakfast Club"."

Jessi shot a look at Kyle, and Kyle blushed. She narrowed her eyes. She knew that if she said anything or if she took him somewhere else to talk it would draw too much attention, so she decided to try something they had been practicing recently. She placed her hand on his arm and looked him directly in the eyes.

'_You told him?'_ she asked inside her head, hoping that he could hear her. Kyle was surprised with how well she communicated. They had just began practicing non-verbal communication with Foss.

'_He overheard us last night,'_ Kyle responded.

"Oh, let's watch Bridesmaids!" Stephen decided. Josh clicked on the title and the movie started.

"I'll go make the popcorn," Nicole said, getting up off of her chair and heading toward the kitchen.

'_You know Josh can't keep a secret,'_ Jessi continued. She was half nervous of Josh telling Nicole and Stephen, and the other half was anger that he knew.

'_Calm down, it's okay,'_ Kyle said, giving her arm a reassuring squeeze.

'_If he keeps making comments like that, Nicole and Stephen are going to find out,'_ she said.

'_I know,'_ Kyle responded. '_I'll have a talk with him.' _Jessi was thoughtful.

_'You know what? Tell them. I don't care anymore, they're going to find out one way or another,' _she thought frustratedly.

_'I don't think now's the best time,' _Kyle replied. He wondered what had caused Jessi to change her mind about telling Nicole and Stephen, but he'd been keeping the secret for over a week and he felt like he was going to burst. He needed advice from the wisest woman he knew, and that was Nicole.

He let go of Jessi's arm, but Jessi continued to scowl. She sat back on the couch and crossed her arms. The movie was starting and Nicole made it back to the living room just in time with a buttery bowl of popcorn.

"Here you guys go," she said, handing the popcorn to Kyle. "Pass it around." Kyle took a handful and handed the bowl to Jessi.

"Want some?" he asked. She held her breath and shook her head 'no' before handing the bowl to Josh. The pizza was already unsettling on her stomach, but the overwhelming smell of popcorn wasn't doing her any good either.

Half way through the movie, Kyle noticed that Jess had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He wanted to run his hands through her hair, but he didn't want to draw any attention. When the movie was over, Jessi decided that it was time for bed.

"Goodnight," she said and headed to her room.

"I think it's about time for all of use to go to bed," Stephen said, looking at the clock. "It is a school night." Everybody stood up, but Kyle stopped them before they got too far.

"Nicole, Stephen," he said. They both stopped and turned to look at Kyle. Even Josh stopped, suspiciously watching Kyle to see what he was going to say. "There's something I need to tell you." Josh laughed.

"Oh my," he said, and ran up the stairs toward his bedroom. Kyle was thankful that he left, knowing that he would be no help to the difficult conversation Kyle was about to face. He wished Jessi would come out and join him, but he knew she wasn't ready to confront them directly.

"Sure, what is it Kyle?" Nicole said.

"You guys might want to sit back down," he suggested. Curiously, Stephen and Nicole obliged. "Jessi and I haven't been completely honest with you lately." Neither Nicole or Stephen said anything, but continued looking at Kyle expectantly.

"You're going to be really mad, but... Jessi and I have been... together," he continued. Nicole stood up.

"Kyle, we talked about this," she started. "That kind of relationship isn't appropriate between you two living under the same roof. You told me it wouldn't happen again."

"I know, and I'm sorry I broke that promise," Kyle continued. "I should never have betrayed your trust."

"No, you shouldn't have," Stephen said, a bit of anger in his tone. This was it, they were angry and disappointed. They always trusted Kyle and he had betrayed them. He could see them gearing up for more lectures. He just had to say it.

"Jessi is pregnant," he said. Whatever Nicole and Stephen were planning on saying had escaped their minds, and Nicole had to sit back down. Stephen rubbed the back of his head.

"Oh my," Nicole said quizzically.

"And that is the exact reason we had set that boundary," Stephen said, obviously severely disappointed. Kyle looked down at the ground. He felt like a terrible person. He felt like he had just single-handedly destroyed the lives of every person in the house.

"I know," Kyle said. "I'm sorry." Stephen sighed.

"I can't deal with this right now, I'm going to bed," he said before he stormed off upstairs. Kyle looked desperately toward Nicole. The whole reason he wanted to tell her so badly because she always knew what to say.

"Well, I guess there's not much we can do about it now," Nicole said to him, moving from the armchair onto the sofa next to Kyle. She placed her hand on his knee. "That's why she hasn't been feeling well these past few weeks." Kyle nodded, and Nicole sighed. "She must be so scared."

"She is," Kyle answered. "And I am too. I don't know what to do. Jessi's been so distant, I don't know what she's thinking anymore, and I know she's thought of abortion, but I can't let her do that."

"And why not?" Nicole asked. Kyle was shocked.

"What do you mean?" Kyle said.

"That's not up to you," Nicole said. "Jessi has the right to decide whether or not she is ready to carry and deliver this baby. If she's not ready emotionally, then she shouldn't have to go through it."

"But it's my baby too," Kyle said, a single tear slipping down his cheek. "It's a living human being with a heartbeat. A beautiful heartbeat- I've heard it! I listen to it all the time." Nicole looked sadly at Kyle.

"That has to be hard, but ultimately it's Jessi's body, and she gets the final say," she said. This did not make Kyle feel any better. It was then that Jessi stepped out of her bedroom. Her eyes were bloodshot- she had been crying too.

"You don't have to worry about that anymore, Kyle," she said with a sniffle. "I'm keeping it." And without another word, she went back into her room, slamming the door behind her. Kyle's heart skipped with relief. He jumped off the couch and headed to her room, but he felt Nicole's hand holding him back.

"Why don't you go to your room," she told Kyle. "Let me talk to Jessi for a minute." Hesitantly, Kyle obeyed her orders.

Nicole entered Jessi's bedroom and found her curled up in a ball on top of her blankets, her back facing away from the door. She was still crying. In that moment, Nicole felt intensely bad for Jessi. She had really grown to care for and love Jessi in the year Jessi had been living with them. She had truly begun to feel like Nicole's own daughter. She sat down next to Jessi and put a hand on her back.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Nicole asked gently, rubbing Jessi's back. Jessi nodded.

"I can't explain it right now," Jessi sniffled. "But I feel like this is something I _need._" Nicole was quiet. "But I'm scared."

"That's normal, honey," Nicole assured Jessi.

"Aren't you mad?" Jessi choked. Nicole laughed.

"Of course we're mad, but it's not going to change anything," she said. "You need to know that Stephen and I are here for you, no matter what, Jessi. We always will be." Jessi smiled. She knew Nicole meant everything she said. After being abandoned by everyone she ever loved before, Nicole's words meant more than the world. Jessi sat up, turned around, and gave Nicole a hug. Nicole hugged her tightly back, and they didn't let go for at least a minute.

"Thank you," Jessi said when they let go.

"You're welcome," Nicole responded. "I'll go calm Stephen down. You get some rest."

"Okay," Jessi said. She maneuvered herself around in her bed so that she was under her blankets and curled up again, but she heard her door open one more time. She turned around to see Kyle walking toward her, now dressed in his pajamas.

Without saying a word, he walked to the other side of her bed, lifted up her comforter, and crawled in. He faced her, letting his forehead touch hers. Jessi was exhausted and already drifting to sleep, but Kyle extended his hand and placed it on her abdomen. For the first time, he not only heard the baby's heartbeat, but could feel it. He didn't ever want to move his hand away again. He placed his free hand on Jessi's face and gave her a loving kiss before both of them fell into a deep sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

((Hi readers! I just wanted to say I read and appreciate every single review I receive. They mean the world to me! I am open to criticism/suggestions as well. Thank you for reading! Also, check out CptMissAmerica on youtube to find the trailer I made for this fic! More Kessi videos are to come!))

When Kyle heard footsteps descending the stairs, he woke up. He had the urge to run back to his tub, but he didn't move.

"Well, I guess I don't have to run anymore," he said with a grin. Jessi rolled onto her back and put her hand on her forehead. "Are you alright?" Kyle asked. Jessi rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom. Kyle followed behind, giving her a worried expression when she was finished vomiting.

"Jessi, you really need to eat something," he told her. "That is nothing but acid. One of the reasons you feel the most sick in the morning is because your stomach is empty."

"Don't talk to me about food," Jessi groaned, leaning against the wall, her eyes closed.

"Sick again?" Nicole asked, approaching the bathroom door. Kyle turned to face her.

"She hasn't been eating," he said frustratedly. ""And if she doesn't eat and keeps getting sick she's going to starve." Nicole laughed at Kyle.

"I know you're worried, Kyle, but this is normal," she reassured him. "The sickness could be over tomorrow or it can last months, but she'll feel better and be able to eat eventually. But you'll at least have to try," she turned toward Jessi who was looking desperately up toward Nicole. "How long has it been Jessi?" Nicole asked.

"Eight weeks," Jessi answered. Nicole nodded her head.

"She's got a while to go," she told Kyle, now heading toward the kitchen. "The good news is, you have a mother in this house that's gone through this twice before." Nicole took a banana off its stand and handed it to Kyle. "She should try eating some fruit."

"Thanks, Kyle said."

"Good morning, Grandma and Grandpa Trager," Josh said as he entered the kitchen. Stephen, who had just sat down at the table, shot an angry look toward his son. "Too soon?" Josh asked.

"It's not funny, Josh," Stephen said. Josh didn't think so. He thought it was hilarious, but he knew his father well enough to know when _not_ to push his buttons. Kyle finished his breakfast and got dressed for school. He knocked on the door to Jessi's bedroom and entered. She was back in bed.

"Nicole said you should try eating this banana," he told her.

"Put it on the end table," she instructed him.

"You're not coming to school today?" he asked, placing the fruit onto the table next to her bed.

"No," she answered. "It's not like I don't know everything anyway."

"Okay," Kyle said, leaving the room.

"Jessi is going to stay home today," Kyle told Nicole as he grabbed his backpack off of the floor in his room.

"I won't be able to stay home with her today, do you suppose she'll be alright?" Nicole asked.

"It's Jessi, of course she'll be alright," Kyle smiled.

Nicole got Jessi into the doctor the next day and picked the two up from school early for the visit.

"Miss Taylor, I didn't see that we received any healthcare files for you," Doctor Saunders said to Jessi as she followed them into the room after taking Jessi's height and weight.

"I don't have any," Jessi responded, as if it were normal.

"Surely you have some medical history?" the doctor asked, perplexed.

"No," Jessi responded.

"Jessi came from the foster care system," Nicole intervened. "There were no files kept on record for her. It was just a flaw in the system."

"That's strange," Saunders said, but she didn't think much of it. "Then we don't know of any family medical history of importance?"

"We don't know any of that," Nicole answered.

"Okay, then," the doctor started. "Jessi, just lay back on the table and I'm going to feel around a little bit, okay?"

"Okay," Jessi said, laying back. She felt the doctor lift up her shirt. She was completely silent in shock. Kyle and Nicole chuckled.

"Where's your bellybutton?" she asked. Jessi smiled.

"Don't have one," she replied. Dr. Saunders looked to Nicole, perplexed. Nicole shrugged.

"It's a mystery," she said, trying to contain another giggle. Kyle got up from his chair and stood beside Jessi, watching as the doctor started to press around her belly.

"A little sore?" Saunders asked Jessi, noticing her grimace after the doctor had pressed on her abdomen.

"Yeah," Jessi answered.

"Well, your insides are stretching out," the doctor explained. "The tenderness will go away soon."

'_Good,'_ Jessi thought.

"You and your baby seem to be in excellent shape," Saunders finally said, placing Jessi's shirt back down over her stomach. "The baby is about the size of a raspberry right now. The morning sickness should go away in a couple of weeks, but you're going to be experiencing some fatigue as well. You've already said no to the antinausea medication, but I'm going to give you some vitamins to take once a day." Jessi sneered at the thought of any medication, including vitamins. "If today's the 16th of September, you're going to be expecting that baby by..." The doctor was flipping through the calendar on her desk. "May 11th." She said. Kyle grinned.

"Thanks, Doctor Saunders," he said.

"You're welcome," she said. "I'll see you guys back here in six weeks."

Jessi hopped off the table and nodded, thanking the doctor before she left.

The next couple of weeks, Jessi learned what foods and smells to avoid. Kyle was feeling more and more relieved that she was finally able to eat and keep *most of it* down. Every so often something would push her over the edge and she would have to run to the bathroom.

"Hey," Jessi said, running up to Kyle shortly after the bell released all of the students from their last classes.

"Hey, Jessi, you're looking well," he said.

"I feel good," Jessi said with a smile, clutching her bag close to her side. "I'm going to come with you to see Foss today. I can't sit around and do nothing anymore, I've been dying to practice our abilities with you."

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Kyle protested. "We've been doing some really taxing stuff lately."

"I don't care," Jessi said more seriously. Kyle didn't say anything. "Look, Kyle. I'm about to go crazy if I don't get out of the house and do something extraordinary."

"Okay, fine," Kyle gave in, knowing that no matter how hard he protested she would still end up coming with him. Jessi smiled happily and skipped ahead of him.

Foss was well aware of Kyle and Jessi's situation. Kyle had talked with him multiple times over the last few weeks, and Foss was very interested to see if the baby would be as extraordinary as its parents.

"Jessi, I'm surprised to see you here today," he said as she and Kyle entered the warehouse.

"Well there's only so much I can lay around throwing up all day before I get bored," she replied sassily as she crossed her arms. Kyle smiled, happy to see that she was feeling better.

"I think it's great you're going to continue practicing, just take it easy, okay?" Foss told her. Jessi rolled her eyes. She was getting sick of people telling her what to do. "Alright, well since you're both here, why don't we work on the telepathic communication again."

"Jessi and I had a full conversation the other night without actually speaking," Kyle said proudly.

"Were you touching?" Foss asked.

"Well, yeah," Kyle answered.

"Let's pick it up a notch," he continued. "No more touching. Project your thoughts through the electricity in the atmosphere instead of through your body." Jessi was perked up, excited for the task. Kyle stood just a few feet in front of her, staring into her eyes.

"I'll go first," he said. Jessi nodded. Kyle opened up his senses, especially his sense of touch. Suddenly the air didn't seem so thin, and he could feel the electricity in the air, and he could feel it bouncing off of Jessi and Foss. He focused on a single phrase: _Can you hear me?_ He could feel the electric impulses in his brain bouncing around carrying the message. He focused on manipulating the message outside of his body and into the air, pushing it toward Jessi. Jessi waited, not breaking the eye contact with Kyle, waiting to receive his message.

_'Can you-'_ she heard. She grinned, waiting for the rest to come through. Kyle's tense stance relaxed and he exhaled with relief.

"Can I what?" Jessi asked.

"I was trying to ask if you could hear me, but I lost control of the electricity right as I was transferring the message to you," he explained.

"Let me try," Jessi said. It bad been quite some time since she'd truly tested her powers, and she felt as if she were bursting with energy.

_'Can you hear me?'_ Jessi thought, using the same process Kyle had used during his attempt. She watched him expectantly.

"Wow, Jessi that was really good," Kyle said. Jessi grinned proudly, but the task had made her feel a little uneasy.

"Very good," Foss said. "Keep trying, Kyle."

The two continued to practice speaking to each other telepathically. With each new try, Kyle got better and better. He learned how to transfer his words effectively without wearing himself out too badly. Jessi was trying to keep up with him. As Foss made them stand further and further apart, it was becoming a more difficult task. After a while, both Kyle and Jessi were mentally exhausted.

"I think that's enough for today," Foss told them. "You guys did great."

"Thanks," said both Kyle and Jessi together. The two left the warehouse and began to walk back home.

"How are you feeling?" Kyle asked as they walked through the brisk, fall air.

"Fine," Jessi responded. "Why?"

"You started slowing down near the end, and you look tired," he explained.

"I am," Jessi said. Kyle could hear in her voice that she was exhausted. "Kyle, you need to stop worrying, okay?" Kyle nodded. He couldn't help it. He wanted to make sure she and the baby were both healthy _and_ happy, but Jessi was always putting health at risk in order to achieve happiness.

Jessi had been so pumped with adrenaline from getting out of the house and practicing her powers that she didn't realize how absolutely tired she was. As she and Kyle made it to the street their house was on, Jessi was no longer able to stay awake. Kyle sensed that something wasn't quite right, and grabbed onto her just before she hit the sidewalk.


	6. Chapter 6

((Sorry, readers! I took down the first mentioned trailer for this fic and made a new one and uploaded it to a new youtube account! The account is CptMissAmerica- go check it out!))

Jessi woke up to the feeling of a cool compress against her forehead. WHen she opened her eyes, she saw Kyle dabbing her face with a wet towel.

"What happened?" Jessi asked.

"You must have overworked yourself with me and Foss today," Kyle explained, placing his hand on her forehead to see if she had cooled down. "Right before we got home you fainted."

"I felt fine," Jessi said, confused. Kyle placed two fingers on Jessi's wrist.

"Your blood pressure has been a little low," he told her. Nicole walked into the room.

"Okay," she said, the telephone pressed against her ear. "Yes. Thank you, Doctor Saunders." Hanging up the phone, Nicole noticed that Jessi was awake. "Hey sweetie," she greeted. Jessi forced a smile, but it was hard when she felt so clammy.

"What did the doctor say?" Kyle asked.

"Jessi's circulatory system is expanding and sometimes the body doesn't produce enough blood quick enough for the heart to keep up," Nicole explained. "Dizziness and lightheadedness are common; actual fainting, not so much, but Jessi had just exerted herself prior." Jessi rolled her eyes. "Dr. Saunders just wants you to be careful."

"Doesn't everyone," Jessi muttered. She began to sit up in her bed and Kyle grabbed her to help her up.

"Don't move too fast," he said. Jessi pushed him away.

"I passed out, Kyle, I'm not a cripple," she said. Kyle took a few steps back.

"I'll go make you some soup," Nicole said before leaving the room.

"I wish you guys would stop hovering and watching my every move," Jessi said. She felt like she was being suffocated by all of the attention she'd been getting from Kyle and Nicole lately. She began to tear up. "I can take care of myself, you know."

"Why are you crying?" Kyle asked, perplexed.

"I don't know," Jessi said, wiping the tears and trying to pull herself together.

"Jessi, we love and care about you," Kyle tried to explain. "We just want you and the baby to be healthy."

"Then give me some space!" Jessi said, raising her voice. Kyle continued to look at her. "Please!" Jessi pleaded. Kyle nodded and left the room.

Kyle and Nicole gave in and gave Jessi more room to be herself again, which Jessi was enjoying very much. They might not have liked some of the things she was doing, such as going for runs and practicing rock climbing and wall jumping with Kyle at the warehouse, but she had proven to them that she could handle it. Especially after she fixed her dizziness issue by manipulating her blood cells to reproduce faster in order to catch up with what her heart required.

One afternoon, she challenged Kyle to a race from Foss' warehouse back home. Kyle obliged, but didn't run nearly as fast as he could have. Jessi rolled her eyes as she sped ahead of him, jumping onto the trash bins and fences. Kyle had to admire how gracefully she moved. He smiled when he noticed the small bulge beginning to protrude beneath her shirt. It wouldn't be long now until people started to notice.

"You could have at least tried to actually race me," Jessi panted, taking off her jacket as they walked into their house. It was cool outside, but running had certainly warmed she and Kyle up. Kyle didn't respond. Jessi knew why he hadn't truly been racing her, and he didn't feel like arguing with her anymore. They had been getting along well the last two weeks.

"Dinner's ready!" Nicole hollered from the kitchen.

"Perfect timing," Kyle said to Jessi as they moved into the dining room.

"As always," Jessi said with a grin.

The Trager's enjoyed their dinner, including Jesi who had certainly been gaining her appetite back little by little. For some reaosn it was any poultry that made her sick, so Nicole chose steak for dinner that particular evening. Jessi and Kyle both stayed to help Nicole with the dishes.

"Thanks, you two," she said with a smile. "Always so helpful."

"No problem," Kyle said. Jessi nodded happily, but in an instant her expression changed. She quickly grabbed her side.

"Is something wrong?" Nicole asked. Jessi looked up. She wasn't sure if the pain that had struck her was normal or not.

"I'm fine," she said as she tried to brush it off and continued to help with the dishes. By now, Kyle had stopped. He noticed something change. A noise he had become familiar with the past few weeks was slowing.

"Jessi, something's not right," Kyle said. The pain struck in Jessi's abdomen again, but this time it was almost unbearable. She doubled over, trying to grab onto the kitchen counter on her way to the ground. As Jessi fell, Kyle reached for her protectively but wasn't able to stop her from hitting the ground ard. Jessi was hunched over the floor, holding herself up with one elbow while caressing her side with the other hand. "We have to get her to the hospital, the baby's heartbeat is slowing down," Kyle said frantically, focusing almost all of his hearing on the sound of the slowing heartbeat.

Nicole dropped the dishes into the sink and quickly grabbed her purse, pulling the car keys. Stephen and Josh had not entered the room and looked at Jessi on the floor worriedly.

"Is she okay?" Josh asked nervously.

"I don't know," Nicole said, tossing the car keys to Stephen. "Go and get the car." Stephen hurried out of the room, Josh watched from as far away as possible, and Nicole bent down with Kyle and Jessi.

"There's not time," Jessi told them.

She could feel the baby's body failing. This couldn't happen. Not to her. Never would she have dreamed this would happen with a body as extraordinary as hers. It hit her in that moment that she realized that even though she was special, she was still human. But she wasn't like everyone else. She and Kyle were different. They could fix this. They had healed themselves and others before, right?

"We have to do something," Jessi pleaded. "We have to try healing it."

"But we don't know what's wrong," Kyle said, still not believing the situation that he was in.

"We have to try!" Jessi yelled.

Kyle picked Jessi up and carried her into her room and placed her on her bed. If they were going to attempt something like this, he could at least make her comfortable. Jessi immediately curled up, still grasping her painful side, and Kyle jumped onto the bed next to her, sitting on his knees.

"I can't do this alone," he said, reaching out and taking Jessi's hand.

They both tightly grabbed each other's arms, and Kyle put his free hand on Jessi's stomach. Nicole now stood by the door watching helplessly. Together, Jessi and Kyle manipulated the blood in her body to race and nourish the baby. Kyle then began sending small electrical pulses into her womb, trying to make its heart beat faster again. It seemed like a lifetime that they were on the bed, connected, both working hard to keep such a small life alive. In reality, Kyle and Jessi had only been on the bed for a few minutes before they both felt the heartbeat stabilize. Jessi's grip on her abdomen and Kyle's arm loosened. They were both panting, and Kyle threw himself onto the mattress with exhaustion. Nicole sighed with relief.

"Did you do it?" she asked.

"I think so," Kyle answered. "But I still think we need to get her to a doctor, just to make sure."

At the hospital, Jessi lay in bed, hooked to a mess of beeping monitors. They explained to the doctors that Jessi had been experiencing severe abdominal pain, but there was no way they could explain that they had stopped a miscarriage. The doctors told Jessi that she should be closely monitored for the next few days and rest to make sure the baby was healthy. She wasn't overly fond of the idea of being cooped up in the hospital for a couple of days, but the scare at home was enough to make her realize that her baby wasn't invincible.

All of the Trager's had followed Jessi to the hospital for support. When the emergency room doctor came into the room with the ultrasound machine, Kyle, who was sitting next to Jessi holding onto her hand, perked up. Jessi had almost been asleep when she noticed Kyle sit up.

"How are you feeling?" the doctor asked Jessi.

"Tired," Jessi answered quietly.

"I bet," the doctor continued. "I'm going to let you sleep, but I need to check on the baby one more time."

"Okay," Jessi said.

The doctor lifted Jessi's gown and put the ultrasound on her stomach. The sound of the baby's heartbeat was heard throughout the room. Of course Jessi and Kyle had heard the sound since it had started, but for the rest of the Trager's, it was a new sound. Kyle grinned proudly, looking at his family. Nicole was smiling, and Stephen couldn't quite hold back a smile either. He still wasn't too happy about the situation, but he was happy to see Kyle so excited.

"Whoa!" Josh said, moving closer to the ultrasound screen. "Is that it?" The doctor laughed as he brought the baby into focus.

"Yup," he said pointing to the screen. "There's the head, and the limbs are beginning to develop." Kyle and Jessi were both staring at the screen. It was the first time they had actually seen the baby. Kyle squeezed Jessi's hand and she grinned.

"Can you tell if it's a boy or a girl?" Josh asked expectantly.

"Not for another six weeks," the doctor said. Josh looked disappointed. "Well, everything looks surprisingly good," the doctor continued. "When you first came in the heartbeat was a little low, but now it's back at a healthy 150 and seems stable."

"That's great news," Nicole said.

"It is, but I'm going to have to ask you all to let Jessi rest up for the night now," the doctor said.

"Of course," Stephen said. He, Nicole, and Josh started to leave the room. "Kyle?"

"Can you just give me and Jessi a minute?" he asked. Nicole nodded and they left the room. Once the doctor left, Kyle turned to Jessi.

"We did it," Jessi said with a smile. "We saved it."

"I think it's safe to say she's a fighter," Kyle responded.

"She?" Jessi asked, taking note of his words. Kyle nodded.

"I don't know why, but when you and I were connected and I was sending the electricity to its heart, I had this overwhelming feeling that it was a girl," he explained. Jessi's smile grew, and a tear slipped down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away.

"Jessi," Kyle continued. "You see now why we've been so hard on you. I can't let anything happen to either of you."

"I'm sorry," Jessi said, more tears sliding down her face.

"I've been trying to give you space and let you be you, but I feel like you've been really distant with me," Kyle continued. He put both of his hands on either side of her face and put his face near hers. "I miss you." Jessi continued to cry, but Kyle brought her in for a kiss, to which Jessi accepted passionately. "Don't do that again," Kyle said, letting go and looking into her green eyes.

"I won't," Jessi said.

"Promise?" Kyle asked.

"Promise," Jessi said, and she meant it.


	7. Chapter 7

((Sorry there was no chapter yesterday! I've slowed down a little bit, but I still have plenty left to write! Again, thanks for all of the reviews, I'm glad you all are enjoying my story... Time for a little sisterly love this chapter :) [although its a bit short, sorry!]))

Jessi was kept for another full day and night before she was able to go home. The time dragged on and on, and Jessi was going stir crazy laying in bed all day with a few exceptions that her nurse would allow her to walk around the hospital floor with Kyle. When she and Kyle arrived back at the Trager home, she was greeted immediately by a hug from Lori. Jessi and Lori had certainly patched things up, especially since Nicole's car accident, but Jessi didn't know they were on hugging-terms just yet. The gesture from Lori, however, made her feel good. She'd tried so hard to regain Lori's trust and approval. Jessi gladly returned the hug.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Lori said once she finally let go of Jessi. Jessi was still taken aback by the hug that she wasn't quite sure what to say at first. She looked toward Kyle, a happy smile spread across her face.

"Um, thanks," she said as she took a step backward and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "What brings you back to town?"

"Oh, there's some big out of town football game the entire campus is going to, which means UDub is going to be a ghost town this weekend," Lori explained. "So I thought I'd come back and visit."

"And we're very happy to finally have you back," Nicole added in, hugging her daughter. Lori grinned.

"And look at you, Jessi!" she said, patting Jessi's belly. "Aren't you cute?" Jessi wasn't so sure about being touched. Kyle and the doctors were the only ones who'd touched her stomach before, but she didn't say anything.

Upon opening the door to her bedroom so she could put her hospital bag away, Jessi noticed a bouquet of flowers and a 'Get Well Soon' balloon on her night stand.

"Declan, Hillary, and Mark all pitched in for that," Lori explained, approaching Jessi's room behind her. Jessi smiled, her heart racing with excitement.

"They did that for me?" she asked in amazement, sitting on her bed and opening the card.

"Of course they did," Lori said.

"I didn't even think Hillary liked me," Jessi told her.

"She's warming up to you," Lori explained. "I told her that I've moved on and so should she. Besides, you helped her vlog get noticed." Jessi snickered and read the notes Lori and her friends had written on the get well card.

_Get well soon!- Hils_

_I hope you're feeling better!- Mark_

_Don't die, okay?- Declan_

_Stay healthy and feel better soon!- Aunt Lori_

Jessi had to laugh.

"Aunt Lori, huh?" she said, grinning at the redhead who was now sitting on the bed next to her.

"Yeahhh," Lori said, grinning back. "I think Josh is warming up to the idea of Uncle Joshie too." Jessi and Lori both giggled.

"Grandma and Grandpa Trager aren't going over to well," Jessi told Lori.

"Grandpa Trager? Hell no," Lori said. "But he'll come around. Grandma Trager? Definitely. Mom's trying to act all stern and motherly about this, but we all know she's missed having little babies to look after."

"You think?" Jessi asked, setting the card down next to her flowers.

"Definitely," Lori said. "Hey, so I've _really_ missed our mall and am in need of a huge shopping spree. I'm assuming you're going to need a change in wardrobe too. Are you down?"

"Sure!" Jessi agreed happily. She'd never been out shopping with another girl around her age. She typically went by herself.

"Sounds like a date, then," Lori said, getting up off of Jessi's bed and leaving the room.

Kyle wanted to go with Jessi and Lori to the mall to keep a look out for Jessi, but Lori made it perfectly clear that it was a girls-only trip.

"This feels so weird," Jessi said, browsing through the racks and shelves of maternity clothes at one of the mall's department stores. Lori already had a couple of bags of new clothes and insisted that it was Jessi's turn to shop.

"Damn right," Lori said. "I never thought I'd be out shopping with you for maternity clothes."

"Me neither," Jessi laughed, taking a look at a pair of stretchy jeans. Lori grabbed her from behind and pulled her around, placing a yellow flowered blouse against Jessi's chest.

"Okay, this is cute, you're getting this," she told Jessi.

"I don't know if I'd wear it..." Jessi said hesitantly.

"Sure you will," Lori said, tossing it over her arm. "It's big enough that you can wear it to school and nobody will notice you're pregnant for another couple of months." Jessi nodded. It was true. She did need to find loose fitting clothing so she wouldn't draw too much negative attention.

The girls had checked out, arms full with bags of clothes. They continued walking through the mall, doing some window shopping.

"So what does Kyle think about becoming a dad?" Lori asked Jessi curiously as they left the food court, both now eating soft pretzels.

"I think he's excited," Jessi said. "But mostly worried. And he's worried about me. You saw him this morning insisting on coming with us today." Lori nodded. "He's been so protective lately that I've felt like I've needed to keep my distance and ignore him."

"Aww, Kyle," Lori said with a smile. "He means well."

"I know."

"But I do agree he's maybe been a little too protective."

"Thank you!" Jessi said happily.

"What I think, is that you two need to start going back on dates," Lori stated. Jessi nodded.

"It has been a while," she admitted. "Just have fun, no stress involved. You guys need to talk about a lot anyway. Have you even started discussing names yet?"

"No," Jessi shook her head. "We haven't even talked about where or how I'm having the baby yet."

"Yeah, you guys need to get on that," Lori said.

"Lori, I'm only fourteen weeks," Jessi told her.

"It's never too early!" Lori laughed. "Oh my God." Jessi turned her head to see what Lori had seen. They were standing in front of Baby Gap. "Look at this little dress!" Lori grabbed Jessi by the arm and dragged her in, holding up an incredibly small, pink dress. Jessi smiled, taking the dress in her own hands. Lori walked off. "And this little monkey onesie!"

Jessi followed Lori around the baby store. As tempting as it was to buy the cute little girl clothes, she didn't want Lori, or any of the Trager's, to know that she and Kyle suspected that the baby was a girl. Not at least until they had their suspicions confirmed by the doctor.

The afternoon spent with Lori had Jessi feeling free and refreshed. She needed a girl-date and didn't even know it.


	8. Chapter 8

Not only did Lori suggest that Jessi and Kyle start dating again, but she planned a date for the two to make sure it happened.

"Thanks again for doing this Lori, you really didn't have you," Kyle said as he and Jessi were getting ready to leave. He wore a nice pair of slacks, a white collared shirt, and a tie. Apparently, Lori had arranged for them to dine at very nice restaurant.

"You're welcome," Lori said, handing Kyle a credit card. "Here's mom's card. You guys need to go or you're going to miss your reservation at 7 o'clock."

"Okay," Kyle said. "Jessi let's go!" Jessi left her bedroom, her head tilted as she put in her earrings.

"I'm coming," she said. She wore a blue dress and had on a pretty necklace Kyle had given to her shortly after they started dating. Kyle and Jessi both grabbed their winter coats as Lori pushed them out the door.

"Have fun!" she said.

"Thanks!" Jessi and Kyle yelled back.

"You look beautiful tonight," Kyle told Jessi as they walked toward the car.

"Thanks," Jessi said, blushing slightly. "You look quite handsome yourself." Kyle smiled, and held open the passenger door for Jessi. "I know how to open a door, Kyle," she said. Kyle looked defeated.

"It's just what guys do for their girlfriends to be polite," Kyle explained, taking his position in the driver's seat.

"Oh," Jessi said, hopping into the car. "That's a dumb rule, are girls lazy? Do they like to feel like men are superior?"

"I wouldn't think too much into it," Kyle said, chuckling. "It's an old tradition and it's really the thought that counts now."

"It's still stupid," Jessi said, but this time Kyle saw her look at him with a smirk. He smiled back. Jessi was always so strong and independent. He knew how it was hard for her to accept the fact that not all girls were like herself, and that things are different than she expects them to be. That was one of the reasons Kyle liked Jessi so much. She always kept him on his toes.

The two made it to the restaurant just in time for their reservation.

"Lori picked a really nice restaurant," Jessi said, looking around and noticing the white tablecloth on their table along with the candle in the center.

"I know," Kyle said. "I'm surprised Nicole and Stephen are letting us use their credit card."

"They must really want us to spend more time together. Everyone thinks we've drifted apart the last couple of months," Jessi said.

"Don't you?" Kyle asked. He knew Jessi had been an emotional roller coaster the past few weeks, but now that her hormones were settling down he finally had the chance to talk with her in a civilized manner.

"I don't know, I guess I've been a little hard to get along with," Jessi shrugged. She looked up at Kyle apologetically.

"And I know I haven't really given you a lot of room to be yourself either," Kyle replied. "I've kind of been a jerk."

"Yeah," Jessi agreed with a smile. "But I have too." They both laughed. Kyle leaned over the table and took her hands in his own. She looked him in the eyes.

"I can't promise I won't worry and be protective over you," Kyle started. "But I promise to ease up and let you do your own thing."

"And I guess I promise I won't shut you out and get mad when you just want me to be safe," Jessi responded. "I know you mean well."

"I do," Kyle said with a grin. "I love you and that little heartbeat too much to let anything happen to you." Jessi smiled.

"I love you too," she said.

Kyle and Jessi both left the restaurant pleasantly stuffed. Lori had instructed the two to head over to one of the most popular lakes in the area during the wintertime for a bit of ice skating.

"I don't know if Lori thought this one through all the way," Jessi said as they stepped out of the car and headed toward the pond. There were a number of people skating around, a few couples, some rowdy teenagers, and a couple of younger children with their parents.

"It should be fun," Kyle said, grabbing the ice skates out of the trunk. "I've never been ice skating before."

"Me neither," Jessi admitted. In the moment that followed, Jessi's expression turned devious. "It'll be a challenge to see who can master it first." Kyle rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Everything's a competition," he said jokingly. Jessi nodded her head and quickly fastened her ice skates.

Jessi grabbed onto Kyle's hand and they both hopped onto the ice. They both wobbled, and Kyle held out his arm to catch Jessi if she fell. Three kids sped by on their skates, giggling furiously. Jessi smiled.

"Let's go!" she said, still holding onto his hand. She dug the tip of her skate into the ice and pushed off, sliding about. Kyle let go of her hand and followed close behind. They each got the hang of skating very quickly.

"This isn't so bad!" Kyle said, noticing another group of teenagers struggling to stay on their feet.

"Not at all," Jessi said, spinning to face him and then skating backward. "It must suck being ordinary," she said as she glided around the lake.

"I don't know," Kyle said, looking at all of the others laughing and having fun on the ice. "They don't seem to mind it."

"That's because they don't know any better," Jessi said before speeding off again. Kyle chased after her, and as he got closer he grabbed her wrist.

"Wait for me!" he laughed. Jessi had gained such great momentum that when Kyle pulled her back she lost her balance, and both she and Kyle were falling quickly. Of course, Kyle made sure he was there to break Jessi's fall, allowing her to land on him. He laid with his back on the ice, Jessi on facing him on his chest and the laughed.

"What did you do that for?" Jessi giggled.

"I wanted you to slow down not drag us down," Kyle explained, running his fingers through her hair.

"Well my center of balance is a little different these days," Jessi explained, about to lift herself off of the ground, but Kyle pulled her down to him and gave her a kiss. One kiss turned into another and so on until the two were distracted by the sound of a screaming child.

Kyle helped Jessi up and they made their way to the child who was sitting on the ice, holding his chin with his hand. A few of his friends were huddled around him, and a few other teenagers gazed from a distance.

"What happened?" Kyle asked when they came close to the kids. They couldn't have been any older than eight.

"Cooper fell on the ice and he cut his face," one of the kids said, pointing to the boy holding his chin.

"Where are your parents?" Jessi asked.

"They went into that coffee shop over there," the second child said, pointing across the lake at the plaza on the other side of the street. "Should I go get them?"

"No," Kyle said, kneeling down and moving the boy's hand off of his face so that he could see the cut. The boy was definitely bleeding and would probably need stitches, but it wasn't something Kyle and Jessi couldn't handle. "Let me see." Jessi skated up toward Kyle and the little boy and watched as Kyle put his hand on the kid's face.

Kyle knew he had to be tricky in the way he helped the little boy, because if the surrounding children watched Kyle heal the boy's wound, they would tell everyone about it and draw unnecessary attention toward him. It wasn't the cleanest way to do the trick, but Kyle ran his thumb over the boy's wound a few times, wiping away the blood and healing it little by little very subtly until it was just a tiny cut. If he healed it all the way, the kids would be suspicious.

"It doesn't look too bad," Kyle told the kid, standing up and wiping his hand on the ice. "Just hold a napkin or your sleeve up to it until the bleeding stops."

"I-I-It's not bad?" the little boy said, still crying.

"No, you'll be fine," Kyle said with a reassuring smile.

"Thanks," the kid said, trying to also smile. The kids skated away.

"Good thinking, not healing him all the way," Jessi said, watching the kids.

"You know little boys and their need for superheroes," Kyle laughed.

"You didn't want to be a superhero?" Jessi said, also laughing.

"There's only one child I can think of that I'd want to think of me as a superhero," Kyle explained.

"Superdad?" Jessi asked playfully.

"Now that just sounds cliché," Kyle responded.

"It does, let's not ever say that again," Jessi laughed. Kyle nodded. "So what did Lori plan next?"

"Nothing," Kyle said. "She just planned dinner and ice skating."

"Hmm," Jessi said. Kyle could tell she wasn't ready to go home just yet. "Let's go get some hot chocolate!"

"How can you possibly think about eating or drinking anything after dinner? We just ate a whole chocolate bread pudding," Kyle asked. He was still stuffed.

"Because I'm hungry and cold, and want hot chocolate," Jessi said matter-of-factly.

Snow started to fall as Kyle and Jessi walked down the street with their hot chocolate. Neither of them wanted the night to end. They walked around town, simply talking and goofing around and having a good time. When they got back to the car, Kyle turned on the heat and they opened the sunroof in order to look at the stars.

They watched the stars in silence for a while until Jessi took a hold of Kyle's hand. She moved closer to him and kissed him gently on the lips. They kissed under the moonlight for a while until Jessi moved her hand off of Kyle's chest and down to his waist, unbuttoning his jeans. Initially, Kyle was surprised at Jessi's move, but he went with it, helping her out of her winter coat and slipping off her shirt.

"Are you sure?" Kyle said hesitantly. Jessi continued to kiss Kyle and moved her hand up his shirt. He took it as a yes.


	9. Chapter 9

"Congratulations, you're half way there!" Dr. Saunders said as she entered the room. Jessi was laying on the table, Kyle sitting in the chair next to her.

"It's definitely exciting," Kyle said happily. Jessi smiled.

"You didn't bring your mom today?" Saunders asked.

"Not today," Kyle answered.

"We're going to keep the gender a secret for another couple of days and tell everyone on Christmas," Jessi explained. Nicole had practically begged Kyle and Jessi to let her come with them. She had been dying to buy baby clothes and needed to know what she could buy. Kyle and Jessi decided to torment her a few days longer and think of some fun way to tell her and the rest of the family over Christmas.

"How cute," Saunders said. "Well, let's take a look." She approached Jessi and lifted her shirt. "The baby is about the size of a cantaloupe this week, and boy or girl, the reproductive organs are almost fully developed already."

"Wow," Jessi said. Kyle nodded. He'd done his research and was well of the baby's development as each week passed.

Dr. Saunders turned on the ultrasound screen and placed the object on Jessi's belly. The sound of the baby's heartbeat was amplified so it was audible to the doctor.

"It's still got a nice, healthy, heartbeat," Saunders told them as she looked carefully at the screen, bringing the small form of the baby into focus.

"I could have told you that," Kyle muttered into Jessi ear, and they both snickered quietly.

"Alright," Saunders said, removing the ultrasound. "Do you guys have any guesses or a specific gender you're hoping for?" she asked with a smile.

"We're thinking it's a girl," Jessi said, looking at Kyle. He nodded. He was almost 100% sure it was a girl, but didn't have a scientific way of proving it.

"Then, you guys would be right," Dr. Saunders said. "It's a girl!" Jessi and Kyle both couldn't contain their excitement. Both had huge smiles and Kyle pulled Jessi in for a hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck, a single happy tear sliding down her cheek. She had been hoping that Kyle's intuition was right. Kyle let go and wiped the tear away.

"I told you," he said. Jessi laughed.

"I knew you were right," she said. Saunders handed her a few paper towels for her to wipe the gel off of her belly and she pulled her shirt back down and stood up.

"You guys are doing great, but there's just one more thing before you go," the doctor said, stopping Kyle and Jessi from leaving the exam room. "I know you're against all the prenatal vitamins I've been asking you to take," she started, pulling out a medicine bottle. "But please, take this one. It's only one tablet you need to take every other day and will really help with her development." Jessi looked at the bottle she was being handed hesitantly. Kyle took it instead.

"Thanks, Dr. Saunders," he said.

"Please, take it," Saunders said again, looking directly at Jessi. Jessi rolled her eyes.

"Fine," she said.

"Great, thank you," the doctor replied. "You two have a great day and I'll see you back here in two months at 28 weeks, okay?"

"Sure," Jessi said.

"Thanks again!" Kyle said with a nod.

Their excitement levels were still running high when they got into the car and started to make their way home.

"I guess we can start talking about names now, huh?" Kyle said happily.

"I've been thinking about it a lot actually," Jessi said nervously, hoping Kyle wouldn't be mad at her.

"You have?" he asked.

"Yeah," Jessi continued. "When you first said you thought she was a girl, I thought about possible names, but I think I know what I want to name her."

"Oh yeah?" Kyle started. If he knew Jessi as well as he believed he did, he had a good guess as to what Jessi was thinking. If she was thinking what Kyle was thinking, then he would agree with her. If not, then they would have to work something out. "What would you like to name her?"

"Sarah," Jessi told Kyle. Kyle nodded. He was right. "It just makes sense to me. My mother loved me and would have been so proud, but since she's not here to see me or the baby, I thought it'd be nice to honor her in that way." Jessi looked down. She knew naming the baby should be something she and Kyle were to do together, but the name was something she felt strongly about. She looked to Kyle hopefully. His eyes met her as he glanced away from the road for a moment.

"I think it'd be a great way to honor your mother," Kyle agreed. Jessi's eyes lit up and she smiled. "And it's a beautiful name. It means..."

"Princess," Jessi finished his sentence for him.

"In Hebrew," Kyle added. Jessi laughed.

"Yeah," she said. "She'll be our little princess." Kyle chuckled.

"I'm sure she will be," he said. "Between you, me, Lori, Nicole and Josh, she'll rule the house."

"You know, there's still a middle name that needs to be chosen," Jessi said. Kyle was quiet for a moment as he thought about a fitting middle name. After a minute or two of silence, he grinned.

"Well, if we're sticking to the theme of honoring our mothers," he started. "Why not Nicole? She's been the biggest blessing in my life- and yours too. I'm sure she'd be thrilled to have us use her name." Jessi gave a thoughtful smile of her own.

"Sarah Nicole," she said. "I like the sound of that."

"Me too," Kyle said.

"That was easy," Jessi said surprised. "I wonder why people have such a hard time naming their kids."

"Probably because they didn't have amazing people to name them after," Kyle answered.

"You are cruel, Kyle!" Nicole said, part of her being serious, the other part playing around with the two shortly after they got home and refused to tell Nicole that the baby was a girl.

"Three more days!" Kyle said. "It will be your Christmas present."

"That's a lousy Christmas present," Josh said, entering the room and taking a bite of an apple he was holding. "I hope you're buying me something good or I'll be pretty disappointed." Kyle rolled his eyes and smiled at Josh.

"I got you something you'll love," Kyle reassured Josh.

"Good," Josh responded. "So you can tell _me_ if I'm going to have a niece or nephew now, right?" Kyle laughed.

"No!" he said.

"Oh come on!" Josh begged. "It better be a boy, we're totally more fun." Nicole laughed.

"Girls are plenty of fun!" she told Josh.

"Girls aren't nearly as interested in superheroes and video games and playing sports as boys are," Josh explained.

"I'm sure Andy would have something to say about that," Kyle reminded Josh.

"You're right," Josh said. He then looked slightly frustrated. "Speaking of, I wish this day would freaking hurry up!"

"That's right, Andy is flying in tomorrow isn't she?" Kyle asked.

"Yes!" Josh said excitedly.

"And Lori's coming home tonight," Nicole added. "We're going to have a full house the next few days."

"I'm looking forward to it... Mail is here," Kyle said, noticing the sound of the mail truck from outside.

"Do you think you could grab that for me?" Nicole asked. "I'm waiting for a letter from my friend Lucy in Ohio."

"Sure," Kyle said, standing up and heading outside. He didn't bother to put on a coat or jacket. He could keep his body temperature regulated in the snow long enough to walk out to the mailbox and back. As he was at the mailbox, a taxi drove by and stopped in front the house next door. Kyle watched curiously, and when the taxi's door opened, he saw Amanda step out into the cold.

"Thank you!" she said, handing a wad of cash to the cab driver. She waved as he drove off. Amanda stood up and looked directly at Kyle. She waved excitedly, put down her bags and made her way to Kyle. Kyle met her between his house and hers. "Hi Kyle!" she greeted him excitedly, giving him a hug. He hugged her tightly in return.

"Amanda!" he said, letting go of her. "You're back! How was France?"

"It was so great!" Amanda said longingly. "Paris is so beautiful and the music program I was involved in was so much fun and my foreign exchange parents were so nice!"

"That's great!" Kyle exclaimed. He knew how much getting into the foreign exchange program meant to Amanda. He was so happy that she got a scholarship to take part in a young musicians program in Paris.

"It was," Amanda continued. "But I'm so happy to be home."

"I bet," Kyle said. He and Amanda were quiet. Neither were quite sure what to say. Even after their second break up they had vowed to remain friends, but it was always a little awkward when they had both been so passionately in love with each other.

"So," Amanda said. "How has everything been here? Did I miss anything exciting?" Kyle rubbed the back of his neck hesitantly. He didn't know what to say to her. She knew that he and Jessi had been seeing each other, but expecting a baby together took the situation to a much higher level. He wasn't sure if he should tell Amanda or not.

Just as Kyle decided to tell Amanda not much had happened since she'd been in France, Jessi opened the front door of the Trager house and stepped out.

"Kyle!" She shouted. "Dinner's ready, we're waiting for you!" When she was finished speaking, she realized that Kyle was with Amanda. A smug grin crossed Jessi's face when Amanda set eyes on her. At home, Jessi didn't hide herself in baggy clothing, which allowed Amanda to visibly see that Jessi was pregnant. Jessi retreated back inside the house, leaving Kyle staring desperately at a dumb-struck Amanda.

"Wow," Amanda said, still looking confused. "Is Jessi pregnant?" Kyle nodded.

"Yeah," he said. "Things have gotten a little hectic around here since you've been gone, but we're happy."

"Happy?" Amanda said with a scoff. "Nothing says happy like a little teen pregnancy in the neighborhood." She said, crossing her arms. Kyle was silent. He knew Amanda was jealous of Jessi. Amanda had always been jealous of the relationship Kyle had with Jessi, even when she was dating Kyle. It was one of the reasons she and Kyle were never able to make it work between them.

"I have to go," Kyle said, walking back toward his own house. AManda remained still, arms crossed. Kyle stopped a few feet away. "I'm glad you're home." He told her genuinely before going inside.

**_Author's Note!_**_ Hey all! Thanks for being patient! I've been working nonstop it feels like and when I'm not working I'm entertaining a guest! I'm also typing this on a really bad sprained wrist! Ouch! But I still appreciate all the reviews :) Thanks so much!_

_**Funny fact:**__ We have a baby name! As I was trying to think of what Jessi and Kyle would realistically name a daughter, it made perfect sense to me that Jessi would want to name her after her mother, Sarah, and it would make sense to use the name Nicole too! Thus Sarah Nicole was named! Funny thing is, that's my name in real life! I thought of the name and was like... "Hey, wait a minute!" _

_AND AMANDA IS BACK! This should spice things up, right?_


	10. Chapter 10

_I'm still here! Sorry it's been slow! It's kind of the boring middle chapters but next chapter will get interesting again! :) Thanks for all the reviews and hanging in there with me! _

Jessi woke up to the sound of Josh pounding on the bedroom door.

"You guys better get up or I'm going to open all of your presents for you," he shouted. Jessi opened her eyes to see Kyle laying across from her. He had a smile and one hand placed on her stomach.

"Merry Christmas," he said. Jessi smiled back and murmured a sleepy _Merry Christmas_ in return. "Sarah's been up for a tleast fifteen minutes," Kyle explained, rubbing his hand on her belly.

"I can feel that," Jessi answered.

"Does it bother you? The constant movement like that?" Kyle asked.

"A little," Jessi responded. "I've mostly gotten used to it but sometimes she catches me off guard."

"Ready to go open presents with the family?" Kyle asked. Jessi stretched and nodded, slowly getting out of bed.

"Good morning, sleepy heads!" Andy greeted Kyle and Jessi chipperly when they entered the living room. She was sitting on the floor under the Christmas tree and was looking through the neatly wrapped gifts. She had arrived in town just two days earlier and Kyle was always so surprised to see how much of a morning person Andy was.

"Good morning!" Kyle said.

"Hey you two," Nicole said. She was sitting next to Stephen on the couch. Both were still dressed in their pajamas and sipping hot coffee.

"Hey guys," greeted Stephen. Josh was at the foot of the stairs, peering toward the second floor.

"LORI!" he yelled.

"I'm _coming,_GOD!" Lori could be heard from upstairs. Josh ran into the living room and sat down next to Andy, wrapping his arm around her. He had been a 100% happier Josh since Andy was in town visiting. Lori finally made an appearance in the living room, wrapped in a blanket, hair still a mess and a zombie-like expression on her face. And she hadn't even drinking the night before.

"Hey beautiful," Stephen said jokingly. She gave him a "not-in-the-mood" look and threw herself on the couch next to Jessi. Jessi giggled.

"It's so early," Lori said, rubbing her eyes.

"It's like 9:30," Josh answered. "Andy and I have been up since like 8."

"Good for you," Lori retorted sarcastically.

"You two better not start," Stephen said, shooting them both an authoritative look. Lori sat back and Josh started to hand out the full stockings hanging on the mantel.

"I still don't understand why you celebrate Christmas when you don't believe in God or religion," Jessi said bluntly as she took the stocking Josh handed to her.

"Just because we don't believe in something, doesn't mean we can't participate in our culture's traditions," Nicole explained gently.

"Who cares? Presents!" Josh said, digging into his own stocking.

The teens chattered happily as they rummaged through their stockings, finding an abundance of socks, candy, and makeup. They moved onto the actual presents soon enough. Josh was happy with Kyle's gift of a new pair of rather expensive sneakers that he had been looking forward to, Lori was still too sleepy to appreciate her gifts, and Kyle and Jessi were simply enjoying their time with the family.

"We have something special for everyone," Kyle said, taking a stash of perfectly wrapped boxes from under the tree and handing one to each of the Trager's. "Open them together." He and Jessi watched anxiously as they all unwrapped their gifts. Almost simultaneously, Nicole, Stephen, Lori, and Josh broke out into an excited discussion. Inside the boxes, Nicole and Stephen found T-Shirts that read: "I 3 My Granddaughter", while Josh and Lori's said: "I 3 My Niece".

"Oh my goodness!" Nicole said happily, holding her hand over her mouth. She got up and gave Kyle and Jessi a rather big hug.

"Yes!" Lori exclaimed. "That's what I was hoping for!"

"Aw man," Josh said jokingly. "Girls are no fun."

"Hey!" Andy said, smacking him on the shoulder.

"Except you!" he said. They kissed. Jessi grinned. She was so glad to see how happy everybody was.

Everyone went their own ways once all of the gifts were cleared and the wrapping paper was picked up. Josh and Andy had a new game they started playing almost immediately, Lori was goofing off with a new laptop, Kyle was helping Stephen put together a new work-bench in the garage, and Nicole and Jessi were putting away some of the new baby accessories in Jessi's room.

"Have you two been discussing names yet?" Nicole asked curiously. Jessi smirked.

"We already picked one out," she admitted.

"Is that a secret too?" Nicole proded.

"No," Jessi said. "The name was pretty easy to pick out. Kyle and I decided to name her after two very amazing women."

"Oh yeah? Who's that?" Nicole asked.

"Her name will be Sarah Nicole," Jessi finally told her. Nicole smiled and hugged Jessi. Jessi grinned back, returning the hug.

"That means the world to me," Nicole told Jessi. "And I'm sure it would have meant the world to your mom." Jessi sighed.

"I wish my mother were here to meet her," she told Nicole.

"I know," Nicole said. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Jessi said. She was still upset about Sarah's death, but she accepted that there was nothing she could do about it.

"This room is getting a little small, isn't it?" Nicole stated, looking around the room.

"A little," Jessi agreed, taking a seat on her bed.

"You know, Kyle barely sleeps in his tub anymore," Nicole started. "Stephen and I were talking about maybe taking the tub away, finishing that back room and turning it into a nursery."

"But Kyle loves his tub," Jessi said.

"I'm sure we can keep it around," Nicole laughed. "Why don't you and Kyle talk about it?"

"Okay, thanks," Jessi said.

At first, Kyle was hesitant with the idea. He loved his room and his personal space- and of course his tub. However, he realized it might not be a bad idea to have a separate space for the baby, but the tub was staying. He couldn't bring himself to part with it just yet. Kyle and Jessi put their brains to work, making a design for the room. Stephen had offered hiring a contractor, but Kyle and Jessi wanted to put the room together themselves.

They installed brand new carpeting and painted the room tan. Jessi helped a lot more than Kyle would have liked, but there was no stopping her until the room was completed. Jessi even added in a bit of wall art by painting murals around the room here and there. By the time school was to start back up in January, Kyle room had been completely transformed into a nursery, complete with furniture, new bedding, and of course the bathtub (decorated accordingly, of course).

Soon enough, Christmas break was over and the Trager's were headed back to school early on Monday morning. Josh had his sleeping pattern so messed up, that he was too tired to drive to school, so he gave Kyle the keys to his car and crashed in the back seat until they arrived to school.

"I think I'm going to need some bigger hoodies," Jessi said to Kyle as they walked across campus and inside the building. Kyle smirked.

"We can go and get some tonight," he told her. Jessi nodded.

The bell rang for class and they split up. Upon walking into her first period class, heads turned and people started muttering. Jessi could hear what they were saying and her heart skipped a beat. They were talking about her and they knew. The second thing that caught her eye was an extra student in the room. She narrowed her eyes, and made her way over to the blonde.

"What the _hell,_ Amanda!" she said with a hushed voice, pulling Amanda away from a group of girls into a quiet corner of the room.

"Well, I didn't know you hadn't told anybody yet!" Amanda said. "How was I supposed to know you've been covering it up?" Jessi furrowed her brows at Amanda, her hand still firmly gripped around the girl's arm. "Ouch, you're hurting me!" Amanda said, pulling away from Jessi and rubbing her arm. Jessi let go but continued to scowl at the blonde. Some boys on the other side of the room chuckled. Jessi took a seat at her desk and placed her head in her palms. This was not how she was planning to tell everybody.

"Hey Jessi," a red haired girl said, sitting at the desk next to Jessi's.

"Hey Lacey," Jessi greeted back. Lacey was the closest thing Jessi had to an actual friend. Lacey tapped her pencil and looked a bit uncomfortable.

"Is what Amanda said true?" Lacey finally asked. Jessi grinded her teeth before nodding her head. Lacey nodded back. "There's no need to feel ashamed," Lacey finally said. Jessi looked up and smiled at her friend.

"I wasn't," she responded. "But everyone's already acting like I should be."

"Yeah, well screw them anyways," Lacey said. Jessi smirked. When Jessi first met Lacey, Lacey had been shoved down in the hallway, and a group of boys had been laughing at her instead of helping her pick up her things. Jessi had said something similar to Lacey then.

"Thanks," Jessi said. Lacey grinned back.

"Alright class, settle down," the teacher said as he walked into the room.

"We'll talk later," Lacey winked at Jessi. Jessi rolled her eyes and grinned playfully.

By the time lunch hour rolled around, it seemed as if the whole school knew.

"Jessi how'd everyone find out?" Kyle asked as they met up for lunch.

"I dunno, why don't you ask your _stupid_ ex-girlfriend Amanda," Jessi said snarkily.

"Amanda?" Kyle said confused. "Why would she tell?"

"Apparently she was under the impression everyone already knew," Jessi said. Kyle sighed.

The two fell victim to harsh comments and joking through lunch.

"Kyle and Jessi sitting in a tree, F-U-C-K-I-N-G! First comes love, then they skip marriage, then-" a group of boys chanted from a nearby table. Jessi clenched her first.

"I swear to God, Kyle," she said through her teeth. "I will strangle them." Kyle put his hand on her fist to comfort her.

"Just ignore them," he told her.

"I'm sure that'd be easier to do if I couldn't hear everything they were saying," Jessi said.

"Just stop listening," Kyle said.

"It's hard to do when they're talking about me," Jessi responded.

"We'll figure it out," Kyle assured Jessi. "We always do."

"Okay," Jessi agreed.


	11. Chapter 11

Jessi wasn't as shocked as Kyle when it came to the cruelty of other students. Unlike Jessi, Kyle hadn't quite experienced how harsh the other students could be. One morning, just a week after the school had learned about their secret, a group of boys started mocking Kyle and Jessi as they passed in the hallway.

"Can you imagine how weird and effed up that kid's gonna be?" one of the boys said to the other two. Jessi had been hearing too many snide remarks and was fed up. Without even thinking, she glided toward teh boy, her hand grasped tightly around his throat, and he hovered a few inches from the ground with his back pressed against the wall. Jessi listened to him choke as he struggled to pry her hands off of his neck.

"Jessi, no!" Kyle said, pulling her off of him. The boy fell to the ground and coughed. He tried to play it cool, standing up and recovering quickly. He couldn't be known as the boy who was almost choked to death by a pregnant girl. He laughed with his friends."

"Jesus, I was wrong," he said. "There won't be a kid because she'll kill the poor beast the second it cries." Jessi looked desperately at Kyle, practically begging for his permission to continue strangling the boy. Kyle looked just about as frustrated as Jessi, and as the boys continued to mock and laugh at them, he couldn't help himself. Kyle threw a punch at the boy, feeling a 'pop' under his nose. The force of the punch sent the boy's head forcefully into the wall and he fell to the ground.

"You asshole!" one of the boy's friends shouted as he went for Kyle. Kyle was still stunned by his own actions of punching the first boy, that he didn't even see the punch coming at him. It hit him in the mouth, causing Kyle to bite his own lip. As the boy prepared to strike again, Jessi caught his hand and twisted his arm, poppping his wrist out of his socket. He fell to the ground, caressing his hand and the other fried tried to move in. By now, all of the students in the hall were watching and shouting. Jessi casually tilted the palm of her hand to face the third boy so nobody would notice, and suddenly the boy could no longer move. Kyle looked at Jessi and she smirked. She hadn't done something special in quite some time and it felt good to do it. The boy looked extremely confused.

"HEY!" shouted a teacher, stepping out of his room, followed by a few others. Jessi released her telekinetic hold on the boy and he stumbled forward. The students in the hall moved on, the boy Kyle knocked out was beginning to wake up, the second was crying over his wrist, and the third looked as if he was questioning his own existence; while Kyle was still shocked at his own actions. Jessi, however, was rather proud of herself as adrenaline surged through her blood. She grinned.

"What's going on?" one of the teachers asked.

"He knocked Patrick out and she broke my freaking arm!" the second boy said.

"I'm sorry," said Kyle, wiping the blood off of his lip. When the teachers saw Jessi, it was safe to assume the cause of the scuffle.

"Alright, to the principal's office, now. All of you," the first teacher said.

"Can I go to the nurse?" the boy with the hurt wrist asked.

"Me too, I think my nose is broken," the first boy continued, holding his bleeding nose. Kyle looked guiltily toward them. One teacher redirected the two toward the nurse while the other continued to lead the students to the principal's.

"You were awesome, Kyle," Jessi said, smiling proudly. Her heart was still racing from the adrenaline rush the fight had given her. Kyle's was too, but beginning to slow down.

"That wasn't awesome, Jessi, that was mean," Kyle told her.

"No, those guys were mean, they deserved it," Jessi muttered back. "Did you see their faces?" Her head started to spin and she could hear her heartbeat in her ears. She tried to ignore it.

"Yeah, I saw their faces, that's why I feel so bad," Kyle answered.

"But you were standing up for us," Jessi reassured him. He tried to smile, but Jessi grabbed onto his sleeve and stopped walking. She looked toward the ground as she tried to make the hall stop spinning.

"Are you alright?" Kyle asked. The teacher stopped also.

"What's wrong, Jessi?" she asked. Jessi's vision went black, but she could still hear everything going on around her. She felt Kyle grab onto her and eventually caught her when she lost consciousness.

Jessi woke up just as Kyle set her down onto a cot in the nurse's office. She could hear the one boy whining about his wrist and saw the other with an ice pack against his head and a towel to his nose. The nurse handed Kyle a towel for his lip. Since all of the students had now ended up at the nurse, the principal decided to meet with them there and was on his way.

"It looks like I missed on heck of a fight," the nurse said happily. One of the teachers gave her a look. Kyle smiled. "Look what you boys did," the nurse continued. "You got this poor girl all worked up and made her pass out." Jessi glared at the nurse. She wasn't overly fond of being called a 'poor girl'.

"I'd feel a lot worse if she hadn't almost torn off my entire hand," the second boy said. Jessi tried to suppress a smirk as the nurse wrapped a blood pressure monitor around her arm.

"None of this would have happened if you would have minded your own business," Kyle said. The boys started arguing but were stopped quickly when the principal entered the room.

"Enough!" he said, frustratedly as he entered. Everyone grew quiet and looked at the principal. The nurse took off the blood pressure monitor and jotted down the results on her paper. "What happened?" he looked to the two teachers for assistance.

"When we came into the hallway we saw that Patrick was knocked out and Jeremy punched Kyle, who presumably punched Patrick."

"But when he tried to hit Kyle again, I blocked his punch," Jessi chimed in, not afraid of what the principal was going to say or do.

"She almost ripped my arm off!" said Jeremy, still holding ice to his wrist. Jessi smirked. The third boy sat quietly. He hadn't done anything wrong. Not that he didn't try to, of course. He didn't want to tell anybody how he had been paralyzed briefly.

"Stop being so dramatic!" Jessi told him. Before anything else could be said, the principal held out his hand.

"Kyle, why did you punch Patrick in the first place?" he asked. Kyle looked desperately at the principal.

"Why do you think?" Jessi asked before Kyle could answer. The principal sighed.

"We'll have to review the security camera footage," he began. "But I'll still have to talk with each of you to get everybody's account on the situation." He sounded irritated. "In the meantime, all of your parents are coming to pick you up and take you home." The three boys groaned, Jessi crossed her arms stubbornly, and Kyle put his head down sadly. He hated being in trouble. He'd gotten into trouble quite a few times before, which made the principal think he was a bad kid, but really they were all misunderstandings... and of course the time Jessi leaked an exam. This time however, he had undoubtedly deserved this punishment, and he was not going to argue about it. Jessi didn't care much at all. "I'll talk to you guys first," the principal said before pulling the curtain to cut off the three boys from Kyle and Jessi. By now, the other two teachers had gone back to their classrooms.

"Your blood pressure is a bit high, but nothing alarming," the nurse told Jessi. Jessi shook her head.

After the principal got Kyle and Jessi's side of the story, Nicole arrived to pick the two up. It frustrated her that she couldn't stand up to the principal for Kyle this time. Not when he had actually gotten himself into real trouble.

"What were you thinking?" Nicole asked as they got into the car.

"I wasn't thinking, that's the problem," Kyle admitted solemnly.

"Yeah, well I was thinking about how I wanted to break that kid's jaw," Jessi said, crossing her arms and peering out the window.

"Well you'll both be lucky if they don't suspend you," Nicole told them.

"Let them," Jessi responded. "I'm not going back anyway." Kyle looked quickly at her.

"What?" he asked.

"Jessi, you can't just drop out," Nicole said reasonably.

"Why not?" Jessi asked. "Other people do it all the time, and I'm a whole lot smarter than them."

"Yes, and they end up working at McDonalds with an hourly wage of $7.25," Nicole responded.

"I don't want to go back," Jessi pleaded.

"Maybe we can look into online school so you can at least graduate," Nicole suggested after a few moments of silence. Jessi nodded. She would accept that option if it meant not going back to school.

"Kyle, we need to train with Foss more," Jessi said to Kyle as they stepped inside the house. "You've barely been going to see him, and I know you're avoiding him because you know I'll go with you."

"Because I'm afraid for you... because something will happen like what happened today," Kyle said. Jessi rolled her eyes.

"Maybe that happened because I haven't been practicing like normal," she said. Kyle stared at her. He could argue all day, but he knew Jessi could argue for two. He was frustrated by her stubbornness but loved it at the same time.

The decision was made for Jessi to complete her senior year online. While everyone was away at work and school, Jessi flew through her class work on the computer and went to Foss' warehouse.

"You're looking good," Foss said.

"Thanks," Jessi responded. "What should we work on today?"

"What have you been having difficulties with?" Foss asked.

"I haven't been doing anything lately," she admitted. "And when I try to do things now I feel sick or black out."

"I guess you could say you're a little out of shape," Foss said.

"What?" Jessi asked. "I run every day and I don't see what that has to do with anything."

"Mentally, I mean," Foss quickly corrected himself. "Your body has gone under a lot of changes and since you haven't been practicing, it's going to give you some side effects."

"Well I don't like it," Jessi said.

"Of course not," Foss said. "You said on the phone that the last thing you did was stopped a boy from moving at school?" Jessi nodded. "Then let's start with something a bit smaller, perhaps you can make some of these books levitate?"

"That's elementary," Jessi said with a scoff. Foss shrugged.

"Your mind is out of shape," he said again. "You have to start small to reacclimatize your mind to these things."

Jessi sighed. She crossed her arms and focused on the books that were laying on the table in front of her. After just a few quick seconds of concentration, the books lifted from the table and began to float. She looked at Foss expectantly, hoping to move on to something bigger.

"That's good," he said. "You can lift them all up together, but can you keep all of them still while moving just one to the other side of the room?" Jessi smirked at the new challenge. She chose a book to move and it started to move across the air while the other books remained suspended sedentarily.

"This isn't very hard," Jessi said disappointedly. Foss thought for a moment.

"Turn out that single light bulb," he instructed her, pointing at the ceiling that was covered in.

"That's no fun," Jessi said, looking toward the light bulb while still keeping the books floating. Instead of simply turning it off, the bulb burst. She smirked. Of course it was something that usually happened when she lost control of her temper, but it was also fun to make a bit of a mess. Foss looked a bit irritated.

"That was good, I guess," he said. "But that's a little easier than actually manipulating the electricity to make it turn off while not affecting the other lights." Jessi rolled her eyes.

"Fine," she said. Foss was right. Bursting a light bulb was easy, but this was a little more difficult. When she focused on observing the electrical patterns surging through the ceiling. In her attempt to turn out the light, the single book she had moved dropped to the floor.

"_Focus Jessi,"_ Foss said. The other books remained in the air. The light above their heads flickered before finally turning off. Jessi smiled proudly.

"Ha!" she said, letting the other books drop. She looked at Foss.

"That was alright," he said. "How do you feel?"

"I feel fine," Jessi responded. "This is easy stuff."

"Good," Foss said. "Now pick up the books with your mind again and bring the other one back to the group while turning the light back on." Jessi grinned, and focused back onto the books. She wondered why she hadn't stopped going to school a long time ago. She imagined how advanced she would be if she had been working with Foss for the past few months instead of being cooped up inside an old dusty school listening to teacher's teach other kids stuff she already knew. This was much better.


	12. Chapter 12

Kyle wasn't incredibly thrilled by Jessi's trips to Foss while everyone was away during the day, but as long as she was staying healthy and not pushing herself, he didn't want to stop her. Jessi and Foss trained hard every day. They built up with moving bigger objects, and he even helped her train physically as well, letting her do the rock wall and going for vigorous runs with her. For being nearly 28 weeks pregnant, she was quite in shape, even though she didn't want to admit her legs and back were beginning to be quite sore and the baby's movement was constantly disturbing her.

Without Jessi being at school to constantly remind other students of her pregnancy, the talk died down and for the most part, Kyle was left alone.

"Hey, Kyle, how's Jessi doing?" he heard from behind him as he was walking down the hall. He knew that voice. He turned around and was facing Amanda.

"She's fine," Kyle said. "I just wish she was at school instead of being cooped up at home all day long." He didn't feel like Amanda needed to know Jessi was out training with Foss during the day. Amanda knew Kyle and Jessi's secret, but now that she was no longer a huge part of his life, he didn't feel the need to give her any details.

"Kyle, I'm so sorry," Amanda said desperately. "How was I supposed to know nobody at the school knew? When I saw her that day I didn't think it was possible for nobody to know." Kyle sighed. He could tell when Amanda was telling the truth and this was one of those moments. He could tell that she truly felt bad.

"Just... mind your own business okay?" Kyle said, continuing to walk down the hallway.

"I really am though," Amanda said, following him, trying to keep up. Kyle stopped.

"I know you are," he finally said kindly.

"Do you want to talk some time and catch up?" Amanda asked. "I'm not insinuating anything," she clarified. "It's just I know we said we should still be friends and I have a lot of great stories about France and I'm sure you have plenty to talk about too." Kyle thought for a moment before giving her a smile.

"Okay," he said. "That'd be fine. Maybe lunch later this week?"

"Sure," Amanda said, nodding. "Sounds great... see you around!" She made her way in the opposite direction and Kyle moved on. He noticed the two boys in front of him shove a girl with short black hair and black clothes out of their way, throwing her books onto the ground.

"Get out of the way, you stupid, emo bitch," one said as he kicked her books away from her and ran away down the hall. Kyle furrowed his brows angrily, but picked up one of the books that was kicked toward him. He immediately recognized the girl as Jessi's close friend, Lacey. She stood against the locker, staring sadly at her books scattered across the hallway with a defeated look upon her face.

"What was that about?" Kyle asked as he continued picking up her books.

"Ryan and Alex have decided they don't like the way I dress," Lacey muttered as Kyle handed back her books. "Thanks Kyle."

"All that just because they don't like your style?" Kyle asked. Lacey nodded.

"Usually when Jessi's with me they are too afraid to say anything or mess with me, but now that she's doing cyber school they decided to be jerks again," Lacey explained.

"I'm sorry, Lacey," Kyle said.

"It's no problem," Lacey said, holding her books close to her chest. "Jessi was like me, but she was lucky enough to get out of this jail. How is she, anyway?"

"She's fine," Kyle answered. "She gets a little bored though, I'm sure she'd be happy if you stopped over some time."

"Okay, that sounds good," Lacey said, starting to smile. Kyle nodded. "Thanks again," she said before walking away.

"What did you work on with Foss today?" Kyle asked Jessi after dinner that same night.

"Well, we went for a 5 mile run, then we did some more levitation and telekinesis training," Jessi explained. "And he's trying to get me to read his mind but we haven't quite figured it out yet."

"Wow, you've been working on the telekinesis a lot lately," Kyle said. "You must be getting pretty good at it." Jessi nodded and smiled.

"What's the biggest thing you can levitate?" she asked him excitedly. Kyle looked around.

"I dunno, that lamp maybe?" he responded, looking at a large lamp sitting on the table next to their bed. "Why?"

"Watch this," Jessi said, standing up and making her way toward the living room. Josh was sitting on the couch, dozing off while watching a movie. Jessi looked at Kyle.

"_Be quiet,"_ she said telepathically. He nodded. She took a moment to focus all of her attention in Josh's direction. Kyle was trying to figure out what she was attempting until he noticed the sofa lifting from the ground. After a few moments, Josh sat up straight and started looking around.

"What the hell?" he mumbled as he looked around to see what was going on. He became fully alert when he realized the sofa was no longer touching the ground. "Whoa!" he said. "Mom! What?!" Kyle chuckled, and Jessi elbowed him playfully in the chest. He quit laughing, but Josh turned around and saw the two standing behind him. "Oh my God, it's just you guys." Jessi and Kyle both started laughing, and Jessi let the sofa drop back onto the ground where it belonged.

"That was impressive," Kyle said to Jessi. She perked up and smiled.

"Thanks," Jessi said.

"Yeah, thanks a lot Jessi, you scared the hell out of me," Josh said, turning off the TV and standing off the couch. "I thought some creepy exorcist shit was going on." They all laughed.

"But you're such an easy target!" Jessi said, giggling. Josh shook his head.

"You guys are impossible- good night!" he said.

"Night!" Kyle and Jessi said together.

"I'm glad you've found a good system with Foss and that you're getting stronger," Kyle told Jessi as they settled into bed. Kyle started to rub Jessi's back as they were laying in bed. He knew how much it had been hurting her even though she wouldn't admit it.

"Me too," Jessi said. "I wish you'd go back- I miss having a little competition."

"That's why I don't go back, you'll push yourself too hard," Kyle answered.

"That's stupid, you're wasting your talents," Jessi told him. Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Good night, Jessi," he said, kissing her on the forehead before rolling over and turning out the lights. Jessi rolled onto her side. It was difficult to get comfortable these days, especially when she tried to go to sleep while Sarah was wide awake. However soon enough, she dozed off into sleep.

"Everything looks good," Dr. Saunders said after turning the ultrasound machine. "The baby has made her way into position for delivery nicely... you're 30 weeks! Only 8 to 10 more to go!" Kyle and Jessi both grinned.

"It's crazy to think," Kyle admitted. Jessi nodded.

_"Or longer..."_she said to Kyle telepathically.

_"What do you mean?" _Kyle asked.

_"Well, we want her to be extraordinary like us, so might need to spend some extra time developing like Baylin," _Jessi answered. Kyle sighed.

_"We'll talk about this later,"_he told her.

"I'm assuming you're out of vitamins so here are some more," Dr. Saunders said, handing Jessi a bottle of vitamins. "Since you're getting so close, expect to start feeling tired pretty soon. There's no need to worry, because it's normal." They nodded. "I'll have to be seeing you more often now to make sure everything is alright as well. See you guys in two weeks," the doctor said before leaving the room.

"Jessi, you know how human anatomy works. You can't just hold the baby in until you think she's developed enough. She's going to come in her own time," Kyle said as he was arguing with Jessi later that night.

"Adam's mother did it!" she exclaimed. "And she was ordinary."

"She was also involved in a scientific experiment with a medical company that had the resources to make it possible," Kyle said in defense.

"Well she had good doctors and I can do special things, I'm sure I can do it," Jessi said stubbornly.

"Maybe you can," Kyle admitted. "I just don't know if it's safe. And Dr. Saunders definitely won't approve."

"Who cares?" Jessi said, reluctantly taking one of her vitamins. "It's my body and I'll do what I want." Kyle sighed. She had a point.

"But it's Sarah's too," he told her. "Just don't do anything to hurt her."

"Of course I won't," Jessi assured him.

"Promise?" Kyle asked.

"Promise."


	13. Chapter 13

A few days later, as Kyle and Jessi were coming home from an after school run, they noticed Lacey walking down the sidewalk in front of their house.

"Hey, Lace," Jessi said, coming to a stop next to her. Lacey looked up from the ground and smiled.

"Hey," she said. "I was just coming to see you."

"Really?" Jessi said, a little surprised. She never had a friend come over before. She grinned at her friend. "Come in!"

"Oh hello!" Nicole said as Jessi and Lacey stepped through the door Kyle was holding open for them.

"Hi," Lacey replied quietly.

"This is my friend Lacey," Jessi introduced her friend. "Lacey, this is Nicole."

"It's nice to meet a friend of Jessi's," Nicole said warmly. "Make yourself at home."

"Thank you," Lacey said, removing her coat.

"I'm going to get a shower," said Kyle, moving out of the front hallway to give Jessi and her friend some space.

"What brings you here?" Jessi asked as she opened the door of her bedroom for them to sit down. Jessi hung up her hoodie and wiped a few beads of sweat from her forehead. It might have still been winter outside but running was certainly a good way to warm up.

"Kyle said you might be getting a little lonely over here," Lacey said, sitting next to Jessi on her bed. "So I wanted to see how you were doing. I'm sorry people pushed you out of school."

"They didn't make me leave," Jessi told her friend. "I chose to leave. They were just a justifiable reason." Lacey smirked before looking a little sad.

"You're lucky," she told Jessi. "I wish my parents would let me do cyber school. I hate getting up and going to school in the morning."

"I'm sorry," Jessi said. She knew the other students were unnecessarily mean to her, and Kyle had told her about the boys that knocked her books out of her hands the other day.

"It's not your fault," Lacey said, forcing a reassuring grin. "Having a friend made it bearable." Jessi felt bad.

"Why won't your parents let you do cyberschool?" Jessi asked.

"They say I need to get out of the house and socialize," Lacey explained. "I thought they were going to have a stroke when I said I was coming to your house this afternoon." They laughed. "I brought you something," Lacey finally said, reaching into the backpack she brought with her. Jessi watched curiously. Lacey pulled out a picture frame from her bag. She turned it over so Jessi could see the picture.

"Wow," Jessi said as she looked at the painting. It was a beautifully colorful painting of a baby horse prancing about in a field of butterflies. "This is beautiful," Jessi said as she looked at all of the details.

"I painted it," Lacey told her. Jessi looked amazed.

"It's amazing," Jessi said.

"Thanks," Lacey responded shyly. "I thought it might be nice in your baby's room."

"It will!" Jessi said, standing up and gesturing for Lacey to follow her into the new nursery.

"Aww, this is so cute," Lacey said, stepping into the nursery.

"Me and Kyle redid the room over Christmas break ourselves," Jessi said.

"You did a really nice job," Lacey told her, noticing Kyle's tub that had a pink blanket draped over it. "What's up with the tub?"

"Long story," Jessi said.

"Haha, okay," Lacey responded.

"Check this out," Jessi said, gesturing toward a print that was already decorating the wall behind the crib. "Kyle and I don't like this very much, we were looking to replace it." Jessi took it down, and Lacey reached up to place her own painting onto the nail that had held the previous one. Jessi watched her carefully, noticing the scars on her arm as her sleeve fell to her elbow. She noticed a more recent cut that was beginning to heal.

"There, that looks great," Lacey said with a smile.

"Are you okay?" Jessi asked. She had spoken with Lacey before about her scars, but Lacey did her best to talk down the severity of her depression. Jessi felt for her. She remembered how bad she felt on the inside when she stood on the platform overlooking the raging river below her. She remembered how badly her insides hurt when she betrayed Kyle, and how she wanted all of her worries and sorrows to be washed away the moment she jumped off of the cliff. She knew how lonely life could be. Before Kyle really came into her life, Jessi was a disappointment to everyone, and everyone she thought cared about her turned out to simply be using her. She was friends with Lacey not only because Lacey was a one-of-a-kind person that got along with Jessi, but she knew Lacey needed a friend, just like Jessi wished she had her first few months of life.

"I'm fine," Lacey said, pushing her sleeve back over her hand and tucking her hair behind her ear. She knew Jessi had noticed her cut.

"Just because I'm not in school with you doesn't mean I'm not here for you still," Jessi told Lacey. "You know I'll come back to school just to beat up anyone who messes with you." Lacey laughed.

"I guess they can't expel you anymore," she said. Jessi grinned.

"Nope," she said. "So just let me know and I'll be over in a heartbeat."

"Thanks," Lacey said. "I gotta go, my mom will be mad if I'm late for dinner."

"Okay, thanks again for the painting," Jessi said as she walked Lacey to the door. Lacey waved goodbye when she hit the end of the driveway and walked away.

"She seems like a nice girl," Nicole said as Jessi closed the door.

"She is," Jessi said, turning around and facing Nicole.

"Wow, Jessi you look beat," she said, noticing the tired look in Jessi's eyes. Jessi felt tired. Extremely. The doctor was definitely right when she said she would be feeling more and more tired. It seemed like the day after her appointment she was already getting progressively sleepier. Kyle hopped off the couch in the living room when he heard Nicole and came to Jessi's side to make sure she was alright.

"You do look tired, Jessi," Kyle said. "Maybe you should get some rest before dinner."

"I don't take naps," Jessi said stubbornly. She said it seriously, but in reality, a nap sounded like the best thing ever.

"Really, Jessi," Kyle persisted. "That was a pretty rough run, you should lay down." Jessi crossed her arms, but she shrugged, giving in. Especially since she felt like she could fall asleep the second she closed her eyes.

"Fine," she said. "But wake me up soon, I don't want to sleep all evening."

"Dinner will be ready in 30 minutes," Nicole sad.

"Perfect," Kyle said, basically pushing Jessi into the bedroom to lay down. As they entered the room, Jessi grabbed Kyle hand and put it on her stomach. Kyle smiled.

"Wow, she's really moving around in there," he said happily.

"Now you see why I have trouble sleeping," Jessi told him.

"I can't imagine," Kyle chuckled. He pointed to the bed. "_Sleep!_" Jessi rolled her eyes and grinned hopping into the bed and pulling the covers over her shoulder. Kyle bent down and kissed her cheek. "I'll wake you up when dinner's ready," he said before leaving the room. Never before had Jessi fallen asleep so quickly.

Kyle went back into the room to wake Jessi up almost exactly 30 minutes later just as Nicole was taking dinner out of the oven. He flipped on the light switch, but Jessi didn't stir. She was in the same position he left her in.

"Jessi, dinner's done," Kyle said, but Jessi didn't answer. He moved in a little closer and listened. He heard her heart and Sarah's hearts beating steadily, and watched the blankets move up and down rhythmically with her breath. He turned the light off and left the room again.

"She's so tired she didn't even wake up," Kyle said, sitting at the dinner table.

"She must have been exhausted," Stephen said.

"She hasn't been getting a lot of sleep recently," Kyle explained. "The baby's been moving around too much."

"That happens, poor thing," Nicole said with a smile.

"She wanted to get up for dinner, you better go get her up or she's gonna be mad at you," Josh said.

"I'm going to let her sleep now, so I'll deal with that later," Kyle said with a smirk.

"Alright, at your own risk," Josh said.

After they finished dinner and cleaned everything up- making sure to save a plate for Jessi- Kyle went back into their room. Again, Jessi was still in the same spot, breathing rhythmically. Kyle moved to the bed and sat down beside her. He rested his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," he said just loud enough for her to hear but also for him not to startle her. "Jessi, wake up," he continued, now speaking a little louder. Jessi didn't budge. He started to shake her gently, talking loudly now, but she was motionless. Kyle stood up off of the bed frantically and moved her hair out of her face. Why wouldn't she wake up? He ran into the living room where the family was settled. "Jessi won't wake up," he said with a bit of panic in his voice. Nicole and Stephen quickly jumped up off of the couch and followed Kyle quickly into their bedroom.

"Did you check her pulse? Is she alive?" Stephen asked worriedly. Nicole placed her hand on Jessi's forehead.

"She seems fine," Kyle said. "Her breathing is even and her blood pressure is fine, and I can hear the baby's heartbeat and it's fine too. I don't know why she won't wake up."

"Her temperature seems fine, but there could be something going on that we can't see... or hear," Nicole said.

"What's wrong?" Josh said, looking into the room from the doorway.

"We don't know yet," Stephen said. "But we need to get Jessi to the hospital." Kyle nodded, and picked Jessi up off of the bed and carried her toward the car.

Kyle gently laid Jessi in the backseat and let her head rest on his legs. Nicole sped quickly down the highway toward the hospital, while Josh and Stephen stayed behind to pack an overnight bag to bring to the hospital shortly.

"I don't understand what's wrong," Kyle said. "She was fine, we went on our run, she was hanging out with Lacey, and now she's just completely unresponsive, but I really can't see anything wrong with her."

"The sooner we get her to the emergency room, the sooner we'll find out," Nicole said nervously. Kyle nodded, placing his hand on Jessi's stomach one more time, being reassured by Sarah's movement that at least she was still okay.


	14. Chapter 14

Nicole stopped abruptly in front of the emergency room drop off and unlocked the car doors. He got out of the car and grabbed Jessi under her shoulders and dragged her out. He scooped her up and carried her through the automatic doors toward the front desk. When the nurses noticed Jessi, they moved quickly to get a bed for Kyle to set her down on.

"What happened?" one nurse asked, approaching them with a rolling cot.

"She was feeling tired so she decided to lay down and now she won't wake up," Kyle explained, trying not to sound too panicked.

"She was fine before she laid down?" the nurse asked, starting to roll the cot back to a room where she could be treated.

"Yeah, she was perfect," Kyle explained. "I don't know what's wrong, she seems fine."

"How far along is she?" the nurse asked, looking at Jessi's belly.

"31 weeks," Kyle answered.

"Who's her prenatal care doctor?" the nurse asked.

"Dr. Saunders," Kyle answered.

"Saunders... Saunders..." the nurse pondered the name. "Oh yes! Dr. Saunders! She's delivering a baby right now upstairs. I will call her down as soon as possible. For now our emergency room doctors will take care of her."

The nurses hooked Jessi up to what seemed like a thousand monitors. They was a machine for her heartbeat, the baby's heartbeat, her respiratory area, and a blood pressure monitor. The nurses were perplexed when they couldn't find anything immediately wrong with her or the baby. Thankfully, as the temporary doctor was beginning to order diagnostic tests, Dr. Saunders entered the room. Kyle listened to the doctors as the temporary told Jessi's doctor about what was happening.

"They said she went to sleep to rest a little bit and she wouldn't wake up," the doctor muttered under his breath to Saunders. "We haven't found anything wrong with her yet... it's like she's just gone comatose. We need to do an MRI, but that's risky with her being pregnant." Dr. Saunders moved closer to Jessi.

"Hey Kyle," she said, greeting him. "Hello, Nicole."

"Hi Dr. Saunders," Nicole replied. Kyle shook his leg anxiously while Nicole was trying to keep calm. At that moment, Stephen and Josh walked in quietly, Stephen put a bag next to Nicole and sat down quietly while Josh leaned against a far wall.

"So obviously we've got a mystery here," the doctor continued, looking at the chart before her. "I just saw you a week ago, so I know Jessi and the baby are in great health. In fact, everything we've checked so far has been good, so we'll have to run a few tests to see what's going on underneath the skin." One of the nurses came in and took a few vials of Jessi's blood.

"We're going to take a few tox screens to see if something foreign is in her bloodstream," Saunders continued. "After those results come back we will probably take her down to MRI."

"Okay," Nicole said. The doctor and nurses left. Kyle stared blankly at Jessi's motionless body. She looked like she was having the best sleep of her life- he just wished she would wake up.

The Tragers waited mostly in silence for news. Every so often a nurse came in to check Jessi and the baby's monitors and wrote notes. Josh was curled up in the corner of Jessi's hospital room sleeping, Stephen appeared to be dozing off in his chair, and Nicole and Kyle watched Jessi desperately. After about 45 minutes, Dr. Saunders came back into the room. Kyle and Nicole sat up attentively to wait for her news.

"Her blood tests came back negative for anything out of the ordinary," she told them, looking disappointed. Kyle felt defeated.

"So an MRI is next?" he asked expectantly.

"Yes," Saunders replied. "But there's a waiting line for the machine." Kyle groaned internally and looked at Nicole. She gave him a sympathetic look. She knew he just wanted Jessi awake and alert, she did too, but unfortunately there was nothing they could do.

"How long?" Nicole asked.

"Between two and three hours," Dr. Saunders replied. She noticed how disappointed the two alert people in the room looked. "I'm sorry," she continued. "We're doing the best we can, but at least Jessi appears to be stable."

"But you have no idea what's wrong with her," Kyle said, annoyed. Nicole put a hand on his shoulder.

"We'll figure it out, Kyle, don't worry," Dr. Saunders said before leaving the room.

"This is awful," Kyle said to Nicole after the doctor was gone.

"I know, but maybe you should try to get some sleep until Jessi goes down for her test," Nicole suggested. Kyle was certainly tired, but he shook his head. There was no way he would be able to sleep now, not until he knew Jessi was going to be okay for certain. Finally, after more and more waiting, Dr. Saunders came and said it was time to take Jessi to the MRI. Kyle stood up and started to follow the doctor, but she held out her hand.

"I'm sorry, Kyle," she began. "But I need you to wait here. We can't have anyone else in the MRI room and there's still a little line to use the machine. We are just going to get her down there to prep her."

"I can't wait with her until she goes in for the test?" Kyle asked.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Saunders answered. They left the room and Kyle resumed his seat next to Nicole.

"Don't worry, Kyle," she started. "She'll be back soon, and hopefully they will know what is wrong." Kyle sat back and nodded.

However, Jessi didn't come back soon. They waited for two hours in silence. Nicole dazed off and on, but Kyle was wide awake. No nurses or doctors even came in the room to give them an update about what was happening. It was three in the morning and Kyle was becoming anxious. He wanted to ask Nicole what he should do, but she too had finally just dozed off into sleep.

"Can I help you?" a woman at the front desk of the ER asked as Kyle approached her.

"Would you be able to tell me the status of Jessi Taylor's MRI?" Kyle asked politely. The woman began clicking through her computer.

"Jessi Taylor... let's see," she muttered as she scrolled through the files. "Ah, here she is," she said before pausing with a quizzical expression on her face.

"What's wrong?" Kyle asked, his heart starting to race.

"My file here indicates that Jessi Taylor checked out over 45 minutes ago," the woman said.

"What?" Kyle said, confused. "You must be looking at the wrong file. Jessi went down to get an MRI- she was in a coma, there's no way she would have checked out." The woman checked the computer.

"No, see, right here," she pointed to the screen. "She was discharged by her doctor."

"That's not possible," Kyle told her, getting frustrated. "Where's Dr. Saunders?"

"Dr. Saunders?" the woman on the other side of the desk said. "Her last patient checked out so she went home to get some sleep."

"This gentleman says she took her patient down to an MRI and never came back," the first woman told the second.

"That's strange," the second replied.

"Maybe Jessi woke up and went home too?" the first woman suggested, looking at Kyle now. The tone of her voice made it sound like even she didn't believe her own optimism. Kyle groaned and left the desk, running down the hallway, following the map signs to the MRI room.

"Excuse me," Kyle said to a doctor getting ready to walk his patient into the room. "Have you seen Dr. Saunders down here? She was supposed to have a patient getting an MRI." The doctor looked confused.

"I'm sorry, Doctor Who?" he asked. Kyle rolled his eyes and started running through the halls again, peering into every room he passed, listening carefully for the two heartbeats he was so used to listening to every day.

He didn't see or hear anything. Was Jessi really gone? Would she really just leave after waking up? It was possible, but very unlikely. He ran back up the stairs and found a security guard in the hallway near Jessi's room.

"Can you help me?" Kyle asked. The security guard looked a little preoccupied, but he couldn't say no to Kyle.

"What can I do for you?" he asked.

"My girlfriend went down for an MRI but never came back. The front desk said she checked out and the doctor went home, but I don't see how that's possible.," Kyle explained.

"If the front desk said she checked out then she checked out," the guard said.

"Can you just, maybe check the cameras to confirm?" Kyle asked desperately.

"Look, kid. If I could, I would," the guard started. "But our whole system has been on the fritz for 2 hours. The surveillance cameras haven't even been working... I can barely use my walkie talkied. If the file said she was discharged, she probably went home. Why don't you check, and if she's not there, call the police."

Kyle made his way quickly back to Jessi's room. He noticed a janitor was trying to clean up, and was asking the Trager's to leave.

"Kyle, what's going on?" Nicole asked sleepily.

"Jessi's gone," Kyle told her.

"I need you to please leave, another patient needs this room," the janitor interrupted. Kyle gestured for the Trager's to follow him out.

"What do you mean Jessi's gone?" Stephen asked. As they all left the room, the janitor stopped them.

"Don't forget your flowers," he said, handing them a vase of flowers.

"Who sent flowers already?" Josh asked, rubbing his eyes and taking the flowers, following everyone down the hallway.

"I didn't see anyone bring flowers," Nicole stated.

"They must have been dropped off when we were all sleeping," suggested Stephen.

"Let me see," Kyle said, grabbing the vase and taking a look at the greeting card. He read it out loud. "_We would like to thank you for your involuntary contribution to our experiment. We will take care of your loved one as our own and return her when finished with our trials. If you wish her to return alive, no contact may be filed with law enforcement._" The note was signed by a strange looking symbol that Kyle had never seen before. He looked up. The Trager's appeared just as shocked as he was.

"What does that mean?" Josh said, now awake and alert.

"It sounds like someone's taken Jessi," Stephen said.

"Why?" Josh said.

"I don't know," answered Nicole. "But we need to call the police."

"Wait," Kyle said. "I don't want to risk calling the police. We don't know anything about who took her and what they do. They could really hurt her and we can't let that happen. We should try to figure this out on our own."

"And how do you supposed we do that?" Josh asked.

"I- I don't know," Kyle answered. "We'll figure it out."


	15. Chapter 15

Hey guys! Sorry I haven't updated. I just want to let you know that I AM still working on it and I'm not going to leave you hanging. School has started back up so I haven't had much time but the next chapter IS started! One of the reasons its been slow besides school is that I am stuck with a plot point and continuity so I'm trying to make it all work out while making sense. I dont want to give you guys a shitty chapter that doesnt make any sense :P Hang in there for me loves!


	16. Chapter 16

"What do you mean you _lost_ her?" Foss asked frustratedly as the Trager's let him into their home. It was 4:30 in the morning, and Foss was obviously not in a great mood.

"We had to take Jessi to the hospital because she wouldn't wake up," Nicole explained. "They took her for an MRI and she never came back. We received this note." Nicole handed Foss the letter from the flowers.

"You didn't think to check the security cameras?" Foss asked.

"Of course," Kyle told him. "But they were 'broken' just when all of this was going on."

"Figures," Foss started, still dissecting the letter. "They had this all planned out long before tonight. They were ready for her." Kyle nodded. "I don't recognize this symbol," Foss then said, looking at the end of the note.

"I didn't either, at first," Kyle started. "But then I noticed something familiar about it." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his old Latnok ring. He took the paper from Foss and placed the ring underneath the symbol and held it up to the light. Most of the Latnok symbol matched up with the new symbol. "I think the mark was based off of the Latnok logo," Kyle continued. "Maybe Latnok isn't as gone as we thought it was." Foss took the letter and ring from Kyle and looked at it for himself.

"I tried to run the symbol through the computer, but of course nothing came up," Kyle said, moving toward the family computer. "I was just about to search for Saunders' license plate number so we can track her car before you got here."

"Good idea," Foss said. The Trager's and Foss looked over Kyle's shoulder as he scrolled through pages upon pages of public records. Stephen came in with a handful of empty mugs and a pot of coffee, looking like he was ready to pass out from exhaustion. Everyone took a glass except for Kyle. He forgot about how tired he was and diligently continued scrolling.

"Here it is," Kyle said finally. "MCU-1131, a Nissan Pathfinder belonging to Amy Saunders. Now let's access the street cameras near the hospital around the time Jessi went missing to try and find it." Kyle loaded up the video cameras and they watched in suspense until they saw the SUV speeding down the street. Kyle changed camera views quickly so he could follow the vehicle around town, until eventually he lost it after it turned onto a residential street.

"Sycamore Terrace?" Foss said, looking at the records for Saunders' vehicle registration. "She lives on 28 Sycamore Terrace... there's no way she took Jessi to her home, it's too simple."

"We have to at least check it out," Kyle insisted.

"I agree," Foss said, heading toward the door.

"You guys should stay here and try to get some rest," Kyle said to the Trager's who appeared ready to help. "Foss and I will go check out her house and call if we need you."

"Okay, sweetie, be careful," Nicole said before they left.

"This is the experiment?" a young girl with long, brown hair asked Dr. Saunders as she stared at Jessi. They were in a house, and Jessi was laying on what seemed to be a pretty comfortable bed. Except she was hooked up to a whole bunch of monitors.

"Yes, this is XX," Saunders responded. The young girl looked curiously.

"She doesn't look like a science experiment," she said.

"She's a human, not a genetically altered test monkey, Bailey," Saunders snapped at the girl. Bailey frowned.

"I know," she said. "I guess I was just expecting something more." Dr. Saunders rolled her eyes. "Now what exactly are we doing again?" Bailey asked.

"Latnok was attempting to recreate Zzyzx's experiment by cloning this one's little boyfriend, XY," Saunders began. "But these two destroyed the experiment before we could get it off the ground. So, we salvaged our machines, but they sabotaged our formula and wiped out our research."

"So... what?" Bailey started, confused. "Are you gonna kill her?" Saunders laughed.

"Maybe, but we need her first," she said with a smile. "I knew I picked you for a reason." She smiled at Bailey, but Bailey did not look very amused.

"Need her for what?" the brunette continued to ask.

"Have you not heard a word I've said to you this past week?" Saunders asked frustratedly.

"Guess not," Bailey said matter-of-factly.

"We are going to take her amniotic fluid and replicate it," Saunders explained. Bailey looked a little grossed out. "That's where you and the other girls come in."

"Why us?" Bailey asked.

"Once we get our new formula going, we will be replacing your amniotic fluid with it in an attempt to kick off a new generation of incredible humans," Saunders explained. "We'll be able to fill our pods once we generate enough formula. We're going to offer laboratory-grown children as an option for wannabe parents everywhere. Of course it will be expensive to do this, where we will turn a great profit. Imagine having thousands of incredible children born this way. And for women who want to make incredible children themselves... well we will offer the amniotic fluid injection."

"So basically you're going to turn the human race into a bunch of superheroes and roll in a wad of cash," Bailey stated.

"That's the idea," Saunders answered with a smile.

"Sick," Bailey said. She said it in a manner that Saunders would think she meant 'cool', but in reality, Bailey thought it was an incredibly horrid experiment. "What are you going to do to her after you... take her stuff?"

"Well a few of us are having some disagreements," Saunders started, sounding a bit bitter about the subject. "Some of us want to take the baby to test our development pod. With her genetics and extended time developing, she has the potential to be extraordinarily amazing, more so than her parents or anyone ever before.

"And the others?" Bailey asked.

"They want XX to have the baby, and then experiment to see what it's capabilities are now," the doctor elaborated. "But if she comes out as a normal baby, it will be a wasted specimen." Bailey nodded. She wished more than anything that she could run far away from Dr. Saunders and the Latnok house. Saunders noticed the expression on Bailey's face. "Come on, let's get you back to the room with the other girls." Bailey followed her out.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 16**

_Sorry the last chapter was so short! I wanted it to be much longer but was stuck and wanted to give you SOMETHING so I uploaded what I had done. Hopefully this'll be a bit better for ya!_

Bailey stepped into the room. It was a long room with three twin beds on either side. The other five girls seemed to be sleeping soundly, so she tried to be extra careful not to make too much noise.

"Where've you been?" the girl in the bed next to Bailey's asked.

"Upstairs with Saunders," Bailey responded. "That bitch is _nuts_. I want out."

"I know she's nuts," the girl replied. "We all want out. She lied to us to get us in here." Bailey nodded.

"They brought in the girl," she told the other. "They put her in her bedroom. Do you know what they're going to do to her, Ali?"

"Of course," Ali responded, reaching over to the table beside her and Bailey's bed and sliding her glasses onto her face so she could see the brunette better. "I'm Saunders' science girl, she's told me everything. I want nothing to do with it."

"It's sick, I feel bad for that girl," Bailey said.

"Maybe we should just make a break for it," Ali suggested. "All of us should just... peace out, ya know?" Bailey's face turned white.

"No, I can't leave," she said. "They'll take me to jail... or worse, juvie."

"How is that worse?" Ali asked, before shaking out her head. "Look, if any of us had somewhere to go, we wouldn't have agreed to come, alright? But... this is just wrong."

Movement could be heard from outside of their door, and Ali quickly threw off her glasses and pretended to be asleep. The door opened and Bailey looked over, where Saunders and a man were standing looking in.

"Still not settled in?" Saunders asked suspiciously.

"I had to go to the bathroom," Bailey quickly responded. Saunders narrowed her eyes.

"Tell Allison I'd like to see her," she instructed the teenager before leaving the room. Once Saunders and the man were gone, Ali stood up and put her glasses back on.

"Hurray for me," she said, getting out of bed and sliding into a pair of slippers. She closed the door of the bedroom behind her and made her way down the hall. She entered the bedroom which she knew to be Jessi's, where she saw Saunders and the man taking notes on her monitors. "You wanted to see me?" Ali said as she stepped in the room.

The room was much smaller than the six girl's room, but she noticed Jessi laying on a full sized bed which looked rather comfortable.

"Hello, Allison," Saunders greeted the girl as she walked into the room. "Feeling well?" Her eyes dropped to the blonde girl's slightly protruding belly. Ali stepped back.

"I'd like to be in bed sleeping, but what did you need?" she replied. Saunders laughed.

"You're my little doctor-in-training," she told the girl. "We've gone over all the monitors and medication dosages, but now it's your time to actually see it for real... Put everything we've practiced to good use."

"Okay," Ali said, moving toward Saunders and the monitors.

"This is it, this is the house," Kyle said as Foss stopped his car along a private street. They were across the road from a very large, beautiful home. A few of the lights were still on inside. Kyle swung open his door and jumped out. Foss followed behind him.

"Kyle, wait," Foss told him.

"What? Why?" Kyle asked.

"I know you're anxious to get Jessi back, but you're not thinking clearly," Foss said. Kyle looked offended. "You're not, you're too concerned about Jessi and Sarah. If you go barging in there, you don't know what will happen. We need to take this slow." Kyle stepped back and sighed, knowing Foss was right.

"What's your plan then?" Kyle asked. Foss gestured for Kyle to follow him. Foss and Kyle snooped around the outside of the house. Kyle listened closely for heartbeats, but he could hear only one. He moved around the outside of the house to where the heartbeat could be heard the loudest, and he peered through the window. He saw an elderly man, sitting in a chair in front of the television, nodding off to sleep. Kyle looked back at Foss disappointedly.

"What?" he asked.

"His is the only heartbeat I hear," Kyle explained. Foss looked in the window at the man.

"It's a big house, Kyle," Foss said. "Let's keep moving around the outside."

"And that is how the baby's EKG is supposed to look every time you check it," Saunders said to Ali as the girl focused on all the little lines.

"Got it," Ali said.

"Now, here's the anesthetic," Saunders said, pulling out a small vile and needle. "As you know, we've been giving small amounts to her through her vitamins, but now we can insert the drugs directly through her IV." She handed the vile and needle to Ali. "Here, you do it."

"Okay," Ali said, nervously taking the objects. Sure, she was an intelligent girl who aspired to someday be a doctor, but she was also only 19 and terrified, and not to mention intimidated by Saunders. "How many milligrams to I give her?"

"Five," Saunders answered. "Every 6 hours. I expect you in here promptly every six hours in order to re-administer the anesthetic and check she and the baby's vitals.

"Okay," Ali said. She didn't like the sounds of that. With shaking hands, she inserted the IV into the vile of anesthesia and drew 5mg. "Which port does it go in?"

"Right here," Saunders pointed to the IV needle on Jessi's hand, and took the cap off. As gently as possible, Ali released the anesthetic into Jessi's system. She sighed nervously after she pulled the needle out.

"May I go back to bed now?" Ali asked.

"You may," Saunders answered. "But set your alarm to get you up in six hours. Tomorrow morning we'll start the amniotic extractions."

"Yes ma'am," Ali said, and hurried off back into her bedroom.

"This is ridiculous, Foss," Kyle said frustratedly. They were back to the front of the house, and the only heartbeat Kyle could hear was that of the old man. "They're not here," Kyle said, defeated. Foss looked around still, curiously.

"This has to be where the van came, we watched it," he said.

"I don't even see the van," Kyle said.

"There's a garage, Kyle," Foss said. Kyle sighed.

"Maybe she knew we'd watch the traffic cameras so she mislead us here," he suggested.

"Possibly," Foss responded. "We should probably keep an eye out on the house, maybe see who leaves in the morning?"

"The only person in that house is that old guy," Kyle said. "I don't want to waste any more time here if Jessi's not here. They could be doing terrible things to her somewhere."

"Well, we can do some more digging, I guess," Foss said. "I've got my laptop in the car, at least we can hang out here and watch while we do some digging." Kyle looked thoughtful. He wanted to find Jessi, and he wanted to find her as soon as possible, but now that the house was a bust, he was at a complete loss. He finally nodded and agreed to Foss' new plan.

"You might wanna see this," the rather built man that had been following Saunders around said to the woman as he pulled her into a security surveillance room. He pulled up the video of Kyle and Foss snooping around the house.

"They were quick," Saunders said. "Keep an eye on them, Jacob. You know what to do if they get in."

"Yes ma'am," the man said.


End file.
